Charles Leclerc knows the Ferrari SF-25 inside out. In F1, he has always shown an important characteristic: the ability to understand a car at its best and, as a result, extract maximum performance. He does not always succeed, but the times when his skills fail to improve the car are very few. On the first day in Las Vegas, he finds the link connecting performance to Ferrari, and tomorrow he fully intends to go faster.
Charles Leclerc has very clear ideas on which key factors absolutely need to be optimized.
At the end of Friday’s final practice sessions, Charles spoke about what could happen tomorrow: “It will all be a matter of anticipating the conditions we will find tomorrow and making sure we start on the right foot. Fortunately, I have very clear ideas about what I want to do with the car and how to improve it. But we will have to wait until tomorrow to understand if the tweaks to the car will really be the right choices.”
A decisive stance from the Monegasque, who goes straight to the point without beating around the bush. The Ferrari driver has been driving really well lately, and during FP2 he studied the Italian car thoroughly to understand it as much as possible. Apparently, he succeeded. And from this comes the idea that will be reinforced in simulator work, a hypothetical field study carried out overnight in Maranello.
The evolution of the track is crucial, and as we explained in our usual preview on the Principal Horce, especially on the American track, this factor is decisive: the evolution is very strong and rapid. We often highlight this, and it is part of the discussion that Frederic Vasseur likes so much regarding on-track execution. The key is often making the tyres work at the correct target temperature.
The grip dilemma for the SF-25
A car’s tyre compounds can face different problems depending on the track. During various qualifying runs, asphalt grip continues to evolve in a non-linear way. The key is to understand the present deeply and predict what will happen over the next few laps. In Las Vegas, this is even more complex because temperatures are generally low and long straights cool the front axle.
Essentially, we are talking about a street circuit that reopens to traffic between sessions. Predicting the friction coefficient is therefore much more complicated than on other tracks. Teams must keep the evolution of asphalt grip under control using various tools. Several studies are conducted before the event itself, analyzing the micro-roughness of the reference surface.
Moreover, each team develops models to estimate grip evolution as track temperature changes. Even a single degree… yes, that’s right, can make a difference that counts at the end of the lap. Part of the work continues on Thursday before the race. Here in Las Vegas, teams must check if sand has settled on the track, a factor that obviously further reduces the estimated grip level.
Another interesting factor concerns the different checks on the asphalt based on the coloration of the ideal racing line. Observing a darker tone indicates that the track at that moment is ready to offer a higher level of grip. The combination of all these indicators, collected by engineers on site, helps create an estimate to get as close as possible to the ideal prediction. All of this is done with the help of computers.
Extra work from Ferrari that the team hopes to rely on in qualifying
Ferrari has spent and is spending more time than expected on this technical area, keeping in mind the difficulties in managing compounds, which many times within this regulatory cycle, especially last year, completely ruined race weekends. The Maranello team has entered the data into an updated simulation model, which is currently carrying out this work.
It is about predicting the track’s grip level, as we understand. Beyond this, weather conditions must be considered, which could include a chance of rain. This situation would further complicate the calculation, altering the track’s current grip level. The model’s accuracy is crucial and depends entirely on how well it was developed by the teams. Did Ferrari get it right?
Charles Leclerc has a clear idea of the direction to take to optimize the setup. Some changes will be made along two related lines: suspension stiffness and ride heights, which obviously influence tyre thermal management. The setup will be designed by estimating the conditions expected in tomorrow’s final Q3 attempt. Ferrari seems prepared. Let’s see if he is right.
Leave a Reply