Scuderia Ferrari is trying to overcome its impasse. The situation in Formula 1 is deficient, as the updated SF-24 with the second update package is disappointing. The Maranello team’s real problems are numerous and do not stem from a single issue. In this context, the Italian side will attempt to maximize the result in the British Grand Prix, as Ferrari arrives in England after two very complicated weekends, even three if we include the Canadian Grand Prix, where they got almost everything wrong in the Montreal rain. The performance decline has currently placed the red car as the fourth force in the 2024 Formula 1 world championship.
Let’s take a look at some of the key characteristics of the Silverstone track and how the Maranello team will approach the next round of the Formula 1 season. The Silverstone circuit begins with a first section featuring lower speeds. We are talking about turns 3, 4, and 5, where mechanical grip, especially in traction, is most important. If we think back to last season, we remember how Red Bull managed this part of the track very well, thanks to incisive recovery from entry to the apex of the corner. This suggests that Ferrari can also be effective in these types of corners. To do so, they will need to maximize the entry phase, a strong technical characteristic of the SF-24 single-seater.
Accelerating from turn 5 leads to a short straight into the central sector. Here, Ferrari will need to minimize losses to Red Bull and McLaren. In turn 2, there is an initial zone with medium speeds, where both mechanical and aerodynamic balance are crucial for a modern Formula 1 car. For the suspension setup, the SF-24 will need a solid front to carry high speed through corners and provide effective load stability. A bit of understeer is more favorable than oversteer, a point that has been worked on.
However, rear grip is essential at turn 7, especially when accelerating. The layout of the corner leads to excess rotation, which is why significant adherence is required at the rear. Overall, a more rearward balance is preferred in this area. In this section, Ferrari must work to optimize the SF-24 car’s setup without excessively compromising other areas. The track continues to Copse, turn 9, where significant vertical load is needed to carry the right speed to the apex.
The next section is critical for achieving a good time in the sector. It features several consecutive decreasing speed corners where precise front-end handling is crucial for maintaining the perfect racing lines. Cars with high levels of downforce will have a clear advantage in this area. However, this vertical load must be balanced between the two axles and preferably without excessive drag. Therefore, generating clean downforce from the floor will be important for the overall lap times.
The most efficient Formula 1 cars will be able to load the rear wing more. In this regard, Ferrari should adopt the new specification seen in the Spanish Grand Prix for the second time in the 2024 Formula 1 championship. This version produces medium downforce. Although the SF-24 is inefficient, the Ferrari technicians should not limit the vertical load on the rear axle too much, as this would lead to high oversteer like was the case in Austria. Ferrari needs to increase top speeds, but overall, it is more productive to sacrifice some speed in favor of developed aerodynamic load.
The optimal downforce level for a single lap will not be equally necessary in the race, where pace is reduced by lowering the average speed in fast corners. Last year, the SF-23 single-seater was good in this regard, but from turn 13 onwards, the last of the Becketts, the gap to Red Bull and McLaren began to widen and could not be reduced until the finish line. The final sector starts with a short straight leading to turn 15, a quick right-hander. The third sector ends with a slow chicane and the last corner, which is taken in acceleration to cross the finish line.
Also in this case, we find an alternation of slow and fast sections, which poses a challenge for the SF-24. These conditions keep Ferrari from reaching its optimal working point. After the upgrades, the operating window of the Ferrari car has narrowed and the goal will be to favor certain parts of the track. Ferrari might choose to optimize for high-speed sections by stiffening the suspension system. The alternative is to seek performance in slow corners and on straightaways, areas where the Italian car, even before Spain, did not always manage to maximize performance.
This latter option may lead to an increase in porpoising, because trying to fix the handling areas of the track means the floor does not work properly. This shows how much the operating window has shortened. Ferrari is trying to understand the situation in order to determine what interventions are needed to find competitiveness. From a tire perspective, stress at Silverstone is quite high, both transversely and longitudinally in areas where the car exits corners under strong acceleration.
Ferrari injects a moderate amount of energy into the tire carcass. For this reason, the risk of exceeding the optimal temperature is generally contained. However, looking at the weather for the English weekend, conditions will not be easy to handle. This is a big problem for the Italian car, which suffered tremendously in Canada, and considering the post-Spain problems, another issue adds to an already deficient scenario. For this reason, it remains to be seen how the Maranello team will manage this competitive context.
According to information gathered by the editorial team of FUnoanalisitecnica, the historic team, based on data collected from the Montreal weekend in Canada, has worked hard in order to increase their understanding of the car considering the updates. Exhaustive simulator work was carried out by both Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz in recent days within the Ferrari Racing Department. Another important test for Ferrari, which cannot afford any more missteps like those seen at the Gilles Villeneuve circuit in Canada. Taking into account previous considerations regarding setup, it will be interesting to see what happens. In the wet, the entire suspension setup is softened a bit to allow for more mechanical grip.
At the same time, greater grip derived from aerodynamics is also sought, so the wing incidence would be increased. Overall, rain brings both advantages and disadvantages. As mentioned, the main limitation for the Maranello team in such conditions concerns tire use, which becomes more challenging when track temperatures drop or are low. On the other hand, with rain, the importance of aerodynamic efficiency decreases, which is a weak point for Ferrari that would be mitigated.
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