Ferrari identify part of problem slowing down SF-23 when running with full tank

“The Red Bull car is on another planet when it comes to the race,” Charles Leclerc stated in the post-Azerbaijan Grand Prix interview. “On a single lap we can compete with them, but not over 51 laps. They have much more race pace than us.” Something seen and reviewed, read and reread since the Belgian GP of the last Formula One season, when the famous technical directive 39 came into effect, sinking the promising Ferrari F1-75 project and slowing down the current Italian car.

Ferrari SF-23: work has been done to reduce the difference in ride height between qualifying and the first part of the race

Ferrari boss Frédéric Vasseur achieved his first podium since he became head of the Maranello team in Baku. “I can only be very happy. It was a good weekend with two poles and a podium. We have taken a step forward.” As for the performance, the French team principal rightly emphasized that the improvements were already present in Melbourne. “The difference is that in Australia we didn’t get any points, which is what counts.” In the post-race press conference, he was then asked where these improvements came from, with a lot of work done by the Maranello team’s technicians since post-Jeddah.

However, he didn’t want to go into too much detail about this new technical philosophy taken on for the setup and development of the SF-23 car: “Do you think I’ll give you the answer?” he said with a smile.

Since the Australian Grand Prix, Scuderia Ferrari has made progress in understanding the car, also aided by the introduction of a new floor, only correlated in Saudi Arabia, then used on both cars in Melbourne, which allowed for the elimination of aerodynamic bouncing (porpoising). Formula1a.uno can delve into more detail about what the technicians of the Italian team have then improved and changed in terms of the setup of the SF-23, namely this new technical philosophy. After careful analysis of the data collected in the first two races of the season, they noticed that their car was running much higher, in terms of ground clearance, in the race compared to qualifying. The weight given by the over 100 kg of fuel on board was not enough to compensate for a significantly slower cornering speed (from 10 to 30 km/h depending on the type of corner) with a full tank, and therefore with much less important vertical forces pressing the car downwards.

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Running higher in corners is a significant disadvantage with this generation of cars, as it means generating much less aerodynamic load from the car’s floor, with consequent slipping and repercussions on tire usage. In Maranello, after “understanding,” they worked mainly on the mechanical setup, in terms of stiffness, to be able to bring the ground clearance closer between qualifying and the first part of the race, even considering a mid-race change of the supplier of the rear suspension dampers, as explained by Formula 1 journalist and expert Piergiuseppe Donadoni for formu1a.uno.

Ferrari: the steps forward will need to be confirmed on tracks that are more demanding in terms of tire management.

“We will bring updates from Miami. However, it is not just a matter of updates, but also how well we will use our package. We have focused on this in recent weeks and we have done it well,” a satisfied Frédéric Vasseur said at the end of the Baku Grand Prix. It is not a coincidence that the Ferrari SF-23 is slow especially with a full tank of fuel. Clearly, the improvements, first in understanding and then in setup, should not be considered miraculous, but they have allowed part of the unexpressed potential in the first two events to be unlocked.

“Honestly, I think we’ve improved a bit. But when I see the gap to the Red Bulls, I think they haven’t pushed all the way. So I don’t really know how much we’ve been able to recover,” Charles Leclerc said in the post-race interview. “The feeling is better, but the Aston Martin cars have also been very fast today. So we still have a lot of work to do.”

Scuderia Ferrari is working to further improve the consistency of the car between qualifying and the race, and this is clearly evident not only in relation to Red Bull, but also compared to Aston Martin and Mercedes. “I think Red Bull has found something we haven’t found yet. That’s where all our attention is at the moment. Everyone in Maranello is working hard to try to understand what we can do better in the race, especially to get more performance,” Charles Leclerc continued. The part of the update package that will be introduced between Imola and Barcelona should allow the Maranello team to take another step forward in this regard.

Not forgetting that Australia and Baku have proved to be two circuits that are not demanding in terms of tire management. The two races were rather slow for long parts of the Grand Prix, with drivers more inclined to preserve tires than to seek performance. “I think Ferrari was also lucky in Baku. The wear of the Hard [tires] was lower than expected,” Fernando Alonso said at the end of the race. “The reasons? At the end of the race, there was a significant drop in temperature that allowed the tires not to overheat too much.”

According to the Spaniard, this allowed Charles Leclerc to hold onto third place at the Baku City Circuit. “In a normal and hot race, they probably would have had more problems. Things will be different in Miami.” So, the next weekend could become a good test for the Maranello team, which wants to confirm itself as the second fastest car on track (yesterday on par with Aston Martin). But it won’t be easy.