The convincing performance during the Spanish Grand Prix boosted the Maranello Scuderia’s chances of taking third place among the constructors at the end of the year, currently held by McLaren. Ferrari is among the teams that have gained the most against the competition with the aerodynamic restrictions in depth and diffuser introduced by the 2021 regulation and with the changes made to the car during the winter. Part of the progress of the SF21 derives from the interventions carried out on the SF1000 through the investment of tokens, necessary to update a specific area of the car freeing itself from the regulatory limits of the development freeze.
During the presentation of the SF21 car, the technicians led by Mattia Binotto revealed how the two development tokens granted by the regulation had been invested at the rear, in particular in the external structure of the gearbox. However, in an interview with the Formula 1 ” Tech Talk ” in- depth program on the eve of the Spanish Grand Prix, David Sanchez , head of Ferrari’s Vehicle Concept division, provided further details on the work carried out at Maranello during the winter. It was thus learned that the regulation governing the 2020-2021 development system also allowed changes to be made to the peripheral components near the structure that is the object of the token investment.
In the case of Ferrari, development tokens were used to update the outer casing of the gearbox, a choice that indirectly allowed by regulation to also work on the internal components of the rear suspension located nearby. These parts were included among the components frozen by the regulation for which development in Maranello would have requited the investment of two dedicated tokens.
Sam Collins also, one of the hosts of the show “Tech Talk”, after speaking with David Sanchez himself revealed that the Maranello technicians have exploited every possibility allowed by the regulation. For the frozen and undevelopable parts, as they are not close enough to the transmission to be modified with the same tokens invested in the gearbox, the men and women of Maranello opted to reposition the same components present on the SF1000, thus trying to improve the behavior of the suspension without introducing updated parts.
Finally, on the SF21 the rear suspension arms were also modified, which however were not included among the components frozen by the regulation.
The result of the changes made with the tokens invested was the narrowing of the gearbox, which freed up a larger section for the passage of external aerodynamic flows passing inside the rear wheels. This resulted in an increase in the air flow directed to the rear, improving the effectiveness of the diffuser extraction process of the flows from the underbody and thus increasing the aerodynamic load generated by the floor.
Secondly, the corrections to the suspension group, which can be operated thanks to the tokens invested in the transmission, made it possible to retouch some critical issues from the point of view of vehicle dynamics and tire use.. The revised behavior of the rear suspension could also have had an impact on aerodynamics, through the influence on the ground clearance control of the rear axle, on which the load generated by the floor and the adjustments of the forward inclination of the car body depend more commonly known as rake.
Since last season Mattia Binotto said that the gain deriving from the investment of the tokens at the rear had a greater potential than other possible interventions, including a possible transition to the narrow nose philosophy. The technicians of Maranello have however tried to partially replicate this solution, leaving intact the front impact structure, frozen by the regulation and whose evolution would have required two tokens. Instead, they went to work on the external cladding, unrestricted, which has been shaped to introduce a small cape at the sides from the muzzle. Through the better management of the flows directed to the bargeboards and to the other aerodynamic elements in the center of the car, it guarantees a more effective use of the floor and therefore more load at the rear.
Strengthened by the updates introduced during the winter and the development work carried out since the beginning of the season, the SF21 showed a good performance on a technical and challenging track such as Barcelona. The calendar now includes the stages in Monaco, Baku and, if confirmed, Istanbul, three circuits with different characteristics from each other on which Ferrari will have to prove its ability to adapt.
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