Ferrari has done the worst it could in the first two rounds of the 2025 Formula 1 season. A dreadful performance in Australia, at a flooded Albert Park circuit, was followed by an embarrassing disaster in China at the 5.451-kilometre Shanghai International Circuit under the eyes of the entire world. A double disqualification for Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton which was caused by foreseeable errors. A worse start could not have been expected. Consider this: at least four drivers, namely Max Verstappen, Lando Norris, Oscar Piastri, and George Russell, alone have twice the points of the Ferrari duo.
Losing a championship like this would definitely hurt. Let’s take a small step back to the 2024 Formula 1 racing campaign. And a key question arises: why didn’t Ferrari manage to win the Constructors’ Championship? As always in such cases, there are several reasons. Undoubtedly, one of them is the skill of its rivals, combined with Ferrari’s clear inability to optimize race weekends consistently. This, regardless of the car’s actual performance on track.
This is exactly what Max Verstappen, in Red Bull, was able to do with great authority, securing his fourth drivers’ title with a car that was at times inferior to the competition. For several races, Red Bull was the third or even fourth-best team in terms of performance on track. Going back to Ferrari’s list of failures, one aspect stands out above all in 2024: the massive, crushing weight of the catastrophic mid-season mistake.
This refers to the aerodynamic upgrade package Ferrari introduced at the Barcelona circuit in the Spanish Grand Prix weekend, particularly that “cursed” misleading floor that can be attributed to the technical team led by former Ferrari technical director Enrico Cardile. A major component that completely disrupted the car’s performance window and cost the Maranello team around 90 days, whici is the equivalent of at least five or even six Grands Prix, where results were severely impacted by this annoying issue.
Most likely, introducing the Monza correction just one race earlier could have secured the Constructors’ title for Ferrari last year. Imagine if they had brought a well-targeted development to the Circuit de Catalunya, like McLaren did, continuously upgrading the MCL38 without mistakes. This entire discussion highlights exactly what Ferrari must avoid at all costs this time..
Ferrari team principal Frederic Vasseur recently pointed out that it is useless to look at the standings now, as it’s too early. The French manager’s statement is true. After all, everything can change quickly, considering that 22 races still remain in the 2025 Formula 1 season. However, the statistics about the drivers at the beginning of this article are striking and emphasize how disastrous Ferrari’s results have been. Numbers in Formula 1 are essential and cannot be ignored.
Did Ferrari maximize its potential in 2024 like Red Bull did with the Dutch driver? Absolutely not. Well… this is an approach that should always be taken, especially when competitiveness is lacking, in order to keep championship dreams alive. Otherwise, if and when the Maranello team returns to the top, that wasted sum of points will weigh heavily and, just like last year, could prove decisive, in a negative way, for the results they aim to achieve.
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Regaining competitiveness by correcting the car: this is the goal of the Maranello team, convinced that no miracles are needed to get back on track. That is why the Maranello team is accelerating its updates to bring them for the race weekend at the Bahrain International Circuit in Sakhir. The Prancing Horse is even attempting to introduce some changes as early as the Japanese Grand Prix next weekend. It appears these will focus on the floor, with modifications aimed at stabilizing the aerodynamic platform, as we have explained in this article.
It’s a difficult operation, and for now, no one is making any firm statements, as the timing is very tight. Beyond this, one major factor must be considered: the cost cap, which limits the resources available for producing new parts and catching up with competitors. Ferrari must inevitably keep a close eye on the budget cap, the ever-present constraint that weighs on every team in each Formula 1 championship.
Spending money? Yes, but with a clear strategy. This is crucial because even a single failed development plan would be fatal. Wasted money that won’t be recovered and will be missed later on. Moreover, bringing an ineffective upgrade to the track means losing valuable time while rivals stay ahead. Ferrari’s “zero mistakes” mission is therefore underway.
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