Ferrari conducts secret test at Mugello with SF-23 to improve data correlation. Ferrari secretly tested the SF-23 at Mugello to improve data correlation between simulations and real-world performance.

Apparently, Ferrari has carried out a testing session at the Mugello circuit without promoting it. This choice by the Maranello team not to publicize a standard TPC, namely a testing previous car programme, seems unusual. On the contrary, according to some staff present at the circuit, there appeared to be a great deal of secrecy surrounding this rather unexpected on-track session, during which some spectators were even asked to leave.

In this case, the driver selected was Antonio Giovinazzi, at the wheel of car number 39. We are talking about the Ferrari SF-23, which competed in the 2023 Formula 1 championship. The former Alfa Romeo driver has long been working in the simulator, with the clear goal of contributing to Ferrari’s cause through dedication and sacrifice in this start of the 2025 Formula 1 campaign. The Italian had already been sent directly from Japan to Maranello in order to test the new floor that later debuted at the Bahrain International Circuit in Sakhir. But let’s return to the present.

The test session carried out yesterday most likely had a precise technical goal. This theory is supported by the fact that it was a fairly secluded test, held on a circuit that, incidentally, the Maranello team owns. We know that the SF-25 suffers from a clear lack of downforce. Charles Leclerc himself made this known, stating that compared to McLaren and Red Bull, they have a deficit that prevents them from closing the gap and fighting for the top. Ferrari team principal Frederic Vasseur also claims that the car from Maranello has untapped potential.

Once unlocked, that performance could bring the car significantly closer to the top. The problems remain the same, already analyzed on various occasions in the last few weeks, ever since the Bahrain pre-season testing session. The Maranello team is still unable to use the ride heights originally planned. The Chinese Grand Prix was the clear example: when lowering the car closer to the ground, the SF-25 risks excessive skid block wear, violating regulations.

Despite the fact that this is a risk faced by all teams, the fact remains that the others manage to “pull it off.” This means the Prancing Horse is not managing to get the car to work as intended. The most likely explanation is aerodynamic, as Ferrari has not yet nailed this aspect. This is especially evident in fast corners, where, Charles Leclerc can confirm, they do not always reach the necessary cornering speeds.

The lack of downforce across a wide range of speeds is undeniable. Thanks to information gathered and reported by the Italian media, we can say that the historic team, with the Mugello test, sought to improve correlation between the simulation environments and reality. That is, between computational fluid dynamics, the Maranello wind tunnel, and the track. Correlation is extremely important right now, because testing with the 2025 Formula 1 cars is strictly regulated.

Simulations must therefore be highly precise; otherwise, the data obtained does not translate into real-world performance. Even Red Bull is experiencing similar issues. From what we have understood, the Italian team needed more accurate input parameters, which can only be obtained by going out on track. Naturally, every small detail is crucial in these situations.

It is therefore no coincidence that the Ferrari engineers and technicians chose the Mugello circuit for this kind of work, as it is a high-downforce track with exactly the type of corners that are causing the Italian car the most trouble. The goal of the testing session, then, was precisely to resolve correlation problems, which, as has happened with Red Bull, may have misled the Ferrari engineers.

It is worth noting that next month a substantial new aerodynamic update package is expected, which the Maranello team should unveil for the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix at the Imola circuit. Having certainty that the virtual tools are working correctly is fundamental ahead of an aerodynamic upgrade that could allow the Italian side to finally take that quality leap needed to join the fight at the top.

The Maranello team is therefore preparing for two weeks of intense work ahead of the Miami Grand Prix, the sixth round of the 2025 Formula 1 championship. After the Florida event, which will host the second seasonal Sprint race, Formula 1 will land at Imola. On Italian soil, Ferrari plans to introduce some developments on Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc’s SF-25, a preview in anticipation of the substantial updates in the works for the Spanish Grand Prix at the Circuit de Catalunya in Barcelona.

— see video above —