The Ferrari SF-23 project is more focused on the overly aggressive pursuit of straight-line speed rather than generating aerodynamic downforce.
“At the start of the race, we began with the hard tire, which we expected to perform well, but instead it went very badly.” – Monegasque driver Charles Leclerc pointed out at the end of the 2023 Formula 1 Spanish Grand Prix, which he ended outside the points zone, unable to recover the gap after starting from the pitlane due to the poor race pace of the SF-23 single-seater.
The Monegasque driver had no grip at all, especially on the front tires. The front axle, which had already emerged as one of the most significant issues during the pre-season testing session in Bahrain, along with aerodynamic bouncing and the significant sensitivity of the floor to changes in ride height (the SF-23 lacks significant strengths), are problems that, despite being understood and improved, are never completely eliminated. The SF-23 project is fundamentally more focused on the pursuit – we can certainly say overly aggressive pursuit – of straight-line speed to compete with Red Bull, but it doesn’t help push enough on the tires, as explained by F1 experts Piergiuseppe Donadoni and Giuliano Duchessa for formu1a.uno.
From the Bahrain testing, it was evident that the floor doesn’t provide enough downforce, and the rear wing used in Barcelona was certainly not a high-downforce specification. This resulted in a setup that was optimally lighter at the simulator compared to the competition, and desperately increasing the downforce would have resulted in a loss of balance towards the rear, limiting the front end, something not desirable at the redesigned Montmelo, while also adding a significant amount of unproductive drag. However, efficiency in high-speed corners remains elusive, and the Ferrari car doesn’t push adequately on the tires in the same way in fast corners. It’s not a coincidence that, even with the extra grip offered by new tires, Carlos Sainz was unable to match the performance of Mercedes and Red Bull in fast corners 9 and 14, paying a significant gap in lap times.
Then there’s the bouncing issue, which at Ferrari is far from being completely eradicated, to the extent that Carlos Sainz had considered the possibility of a challenging weekend. “I am still convinced that with the bouncing and limitations at high speeds [lack of downforce] that we have, we would have never been very competitive here,” said the Spaniard following the Spanish Grand Prix.
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“Some rushed to highlight that the new sidepods don’t bring spring,” referring to the famous Italian saying. At first glance, it was certainly not a good debut, but a clearer idea of this change and the development of the SF-24 will be obtained in the upcoming races. Making a comparison with the old configuration, still used by the Haas team, including the mechanics, it still paints a rather bleak picture for the men from Maranello. Even the American team experienced significant tire management issues in the Spanish Grand Prix at the Circuit de Catalunya.
“Today was tough because tire wear was very high for us, and we had to make three pit stops while the competition only made two,” explained Nico Hulkenberg, who then shared a similar assessment to that of Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc. “It seems like we are competitive on a single lap, but we still need to work on long runs and find a certain rhythm,” concluded the German, echoing a phrase repeated by the two drivers in red.
Always remembering that especially the floor and the mechanics, serving a better if not limited aerodynamics like on the Italian car, make up a large portion of these cars’ performance.
