Ferrari loses Baku race due to traction deficit

Let’s take a detailed look at how events unfolded for Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz in the Azerbaijan Grand Prix at the Baku Circuit:

The two Ferrari SF-24 cars line up on the starting grid for round 17 of the 2024 Formula 1 season. In the final moments, a certain buzz surrounded drivers and engineers, with useful information shared to lock in the strategies to be used. Let’s take a look at the weather conditions just a few minutes before the the start of the Azerbaijan F1 Grand Prix: air temperature at 27.2°C, asphalt temperature at 40.5°C, humidity at 43%, and wind blowing at 1.2 km/h from the southwest.

After the usual radio checks, the Ferrari engines roar to life. The green light goes on, and the installation lap begins. Both Ferraris are starting on yellow-banded Pirellis. During the formation lap, both Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz work on warming up the tires as much as possible to maximize grip at the start. Two burnouts are performed to manage the temperature on the rear axle before taking their positions on the grid. Leclerc gets off to a great start and holds his position. Carlos also had a good clutch release, but in turn 2, the Spaniard gets “tricked” by Perez.

During the first few laps, the pack stays relatively compact. Carlos tries not to lose contact with Perez, while keeping an eye on his mirrors to monitor the Red Bull of three-time world champion Max Verstappen. Observing the onboards, you can see Ferrari’s very clean driving, with perfectly traced lines and no corrections. At this point, the race is in a holding pattern. Charles hasn’t tried to pull away, probably because the strategy is to avoid stressing the tires too much in their first life cycle.

The track engineers compliment the Ferrari drivers on the excellent job they’ve done in this regard. Everything seems under control. Too bad for Carlos’ lapse, which cost him a position to the number 81 McLaren. On lap 6, the expected message about the tires comes in: “tyres are ready.” This means the hysteresis cycle has been successfully completed, and all four tires are in the optimal operating window. Because of this, Charles sets the fastest lap of the race, without even using the DRS.

Leclerc is perfectly executing the race plan laid out on paper. His tire management is excellent. The same goes for Carlos, who receives a positive radio message: the tire degradation is negative, meaning it weighs less than the reduction in the car’s weight due to fuel consumption. On lap 9, the first tire phase update comes in, a move to give the engineers a better idea of the tire status. Slowly but surely, Charles is pulling away from Piastri, who is now about three and a half seconds behind the Ferrari driver. Plan A is confirmed for car number 16.

Sainz is doing well but doesn’t seem to have his teammate’s pace. Adami tries to help him with handling tips, but the Spaniard prefers to manage the race his own way. On lap 13, Verstappen was struggling with his tires and decided to pit for new ones. Ferrari does not react to the Dutchman’s stop, as Sainz, having more pace, does not risk being undercut by the three-time world champion. Piastri is also struggling with his tires, so much so that by lap 14, the gap to Leclerc exceeds six seconds. Two laps later, the Australian pits, as does Perez.

One lap later, Leclerc also enters the pit lane to change his tires. This means Sainz is now leading the race. It’s a quick pit stop, with no changes made to the front-end load, and the mechanics mount a set of white-banded Pirellis. Two laps later, it’s the Spaniard’s turn to change his tires. Sainz returns to the track behind Perez. Carlos holds his position against Verstappen’s RB20 but loses it to Norris’ McLaren, although Norris still has to pit as he started on the hard tires.

Piastri, with hard tires, is very aggressive, and having pitted one lap earlier, he erases the gap previously created by the Monegasque. Furthermore, Leclerc’s slow outlap favors the return of the Dutchman, who closes in on Ferrari number 16. Charles tries to react, but with the last bit of DRS, he is overtaken by the Monegasque at the braking zone of turn 1, where he did not expect the maneuver. The Ferrari driver doesn’t give up and stays glued to the McLaren. The race becomes more difficult because, with the hard tires, the two SF-24s seem to lack the pace they had in the previous stint.

Meanwhile, Carlos is trying to attack Norris’ MCL38. It must be said that the two British cars are very fast on the straight. Sainz finally manages to complete the overtake. Next target is Albon, who, like Lando, has yet to make his first stop. A lap later, the British-Thai driver also gives way to the Spaniard, who has lost a lot of time and is about ten seconds behind Perez’s Red Bull. As mentioned, Leclerc doesn’t let go of Piastri, but despite using DRS, he can’t get close enough to attempt an overtake.

It must be said that McLaren has great traction coming out of turn 16, which allows it to gain those few meters needed to escape at the start of the long high-speed section. To launch an attack on number 81, Charles must improve in the second part of sector 2, where he struggles to match Piastri’s pace. Midway through the race, lap 26, the positions on track remain unchanged. It remains to be seen whether, as the cars get lighter, the Ferrari will be able to improve in the acceleration phases. Finally, on lap 29, Leclerc makes his first attack.

However, the Australian defends very well and closes all the spaces in turn 1. Meanwhile, Carlos is lowering his lap times, trying to close the gap to the Mexican Red Bull driver, and slowly he succeeds, as the distance between the two progressively decreases. Checo is struggling with his tires, and Sainz is looking to take advantage. Returning to the front of the race, we must say that the battle at the top is really exciting, as the pace of the two cars now seems very similar. Unfortunately, as mentioned, the exceptional traction of the MCL38 is driving the Monegasque crazy.

Bozzi tries to push his driver to maintain maximum concentration for a really thrilling challenge. Lap 30, the second tire phase update of the race arrives, to check all the details regarding the state of the hard tires on the two Ferraris. On lap 31, Leclerc makes his second attack, this time more incisive. But Piastri again defends brilliantly and closes all the spaces. Sainz’s gap continues to decrease, as the Spaniard has a good pace.

Bozzi is animated on the radio, urging his driver to give it his all once more. However, looking at number 16, it seems that the rear is starting to suffer a bit. This is noticeable because in the acceleration phases, the Ferrari seems weaker compared to previous laps. With 21 laps to go, anything can still happen, that much is clear. Ferrari tries a “move” by calling for a pit stop with Leclerc, but it doesn’t happen. In the following five laps, nothing changes. Bryan suggests Plan C, which the Monegasque considers, calling it “not stupid.”

At this point, it’s worth considering. Looking at Norris’ pace, who started on the hard tires, his performance was really optimal until the end of the stint. That’s probably why the performance of Piastri’s MCL38 will likely remain the same until the end of the race. Leclerc doesn’t give up and stays about seven-tenths behind Oscar’s McLaren. Without a doubt, the race of the “second” driver of the English team should be praised, as he is driving with extreme precision and composure. Hats off. Meanwhile, it’s worth noting that Perez has been behind Charles for 20 laps and isn’t giving up.

With 8 laps remaining, Sainz also joins the group. A thrilling finale is expected. Bozzi doesn’t back down either, letting Leclerc know he can use more overboost K1 at the end of the straight: “keep pushing and maintain the pressure.” Charles is trying in every way, but the McLaren is really solid. That lack of traction in the SF-24 is a heavy burden. Leclerc loses the use of DRS, and Perez sticks to his rear, followed by Sainz. Four laps to go: “I have no more rear tires.”

Leclerc’s message is clear, as he now must defend with all his strength against Perez’s Red Bull. Meanwhile, Carlos, behind the Mexican, is trying to attack him. Lap 49, plot twist! Checo attacks Charles, who defends, and the Spaniard takes advantage by passing the Mexican, but Perez doesn’t give up and pulls alongside on the next straight, where the two make contact and crash into the barriers. The race director brings out the Safety Car, and the race ends that way. Piastri wins the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. The Monegasque’s only mistake in the race costs him dearly, as he could and should have defended better against Oscar.

To make the weekend worse for Ferrari, there’s the incident between Sainz and Perez. It remains to be seen who bears the greater blame. Ferrari could have won, but didn’t. Although the disappointment is high right now for a missed triumph that was within reach, the weekend must still be considered positive for the Prancing Horse, which returned to the track after the break with a decidedly different attitude. There are still 7 races to go, where Ferrari must keep pushing to chase its goals. Next stop: Singapore, a whole different story compared to Baku.