Ferrari SF-24: Maranello engineers looking for aero-mechanical compromise to validate Monza floor. Ferrari SF-24 floor: the upcoming rounds will give us a clearer feedback.

Despite the enthusiasm following Charles Leclerc’s splendid race win in the Italian Grand Prix at Monza, we can say that Ferrari’s 2024 Formula 1 world Championship is now compromised. Or perhaps it would be more accurate to say that it never really began. We are referring, of course, to the possibility of winning at least one of the two world titles, an opportunity that, in the end, was never concrete, although in theory it is still more than possible.

Ferrari team principal Frederic Vasseur seems to still believe in it, at least for the constructors’ title. However, this goal is difficult to achieve. The reasons are simple. Ferrari does not possess the competitive stability necessary to accumulate a sufficient quantity of points in each race, a prerequisite essential for aspiring to this achievement. Moreover, although McLaren is optimizing its performance, it demonstrates a much higher level of technical preparation.

In this context, there are two other factors to consider. The first concerns Mercedes. The Brackley team is further behind in the standings, but it still has the possibility of fighting at the top with the W15 and taking away precious points from the Italian team. Not to mention Red Bull: the RB20 is certainly not inferior to the SF-24, and beating it each race weekend is by no means a given. The overall situation is deliberately realistic because, so far, the numbers speak for themselves. Is it possible to change the situation? Definitely yes. Anyone who manages to make a significant step forward in terms of performance has the chance to do so.

Ferrari has been working on this for a while. The latest update on the floor is aimed precisely at this objective. The component in question yielded good results at the Monza circuit last weekend. We saw it, Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz talked about it and the Maranello technicians confirmed it. However, the layout was not the ideal environment to precisely test the effectiveness of the update. For this reason, the upcoming rounds of the Formula 1 World Championship will give us a clearer feedback. The Prancing Horse is convinced that the innovation introduced in Italy will make a difference from now on, taking into account the significant changes the team has made. It is a fundamental update that, in addition to providing a higher level of downforce, should also stabilize it.

The generation of vertical thrust in current Formula 1 cars largely depends on ride height. Using those predetermined by the design is crucial. Ferrari could not do so with the version introduced at the Circuit de Catalunya in the Spanish Grand Prix, and the results on the track clearly demonstrated this. Besides the effectiveness of the components, the technicians of a team must be able to maximize the available resources to optimize the material at hand. After the summer break, the Maranello team has shown they know how to do this, and achieving it has been crucial, especially in pursuing ambitious goals.

A well-designed Formula 1 floor, within the current regulations governing wing cars, can make a significant difference in tire management. Definitely yes. First of all, a greater amount of aerodynamic load is always advantageous, as it helps manage tire degradation. During cornering phases, the cars often tend to slip, which increases tire wear and reduces the tire’s useful life. However, the most important factor for optimizing the tires is undoubtedly the consistency of aerodynamic load.

Yesterday, we analyzed Ferrari’s strategy for Monza, a tactic that succeeded because everything went perfectly. It was by no means certain that they would manage it, but if Charles Leclerc’s SF-24, number 16, was able to manage the tires perfectly for a full 38 laps after the only pit stop during the Italian Grand Prix, much of the credit goes to the handling meticulously planned by the historic Italian team. This, combined with the top speed that provided a significant time advantage in high-speed sections, contributed to the positive result at the Monza circuit in front of the Tifosi.

Now, let’s clarify something: it is not true that the new floor did not provide even a single point of additional downforce. On the contrary, it helped increase the car’s overall downforce, and the fact that Ferrari, despite a lower-than-optimal level of downforce for the Monza track, managed to make the car work and excellently manage the tires is proof of this. This is what the Italian team is counting on for the rest of the 2024 Formula 1 championship, with the goal of confirming recent performances. Moreover, the handling of the SF-24 has not changed since the Netherlands, contrary to what one might think.

Ferrari consistently maintains a basic tendency toward oversteer, an endemic excess of rotation that needs to be managed and exploited depending on the corners and the characteristics of the track. What we can certainly say, after carefully watching hours of on-board footage, is that there has been significant progress in the aero-mechanical interaction. The department responsible for vehicle dynamics is making a great effort. The support from Loic Serra is very valuable and will be even more so in the coming months when Ferrari introduces some new elements related to the internal components of the suspension systems.

At the moment, it is impossible to predict with certainty Ferrari’s performance at the Baku City Circuit. Anyone making predictions is simply speculating. Even the team’s engineers do not have a clear idea of how the SF-24 will behave on the Azerbaijani circuit. Simulations with the driver-in-the-loop software will offer the first hint of the car’s competitiveness, but this will obviously need to be confirmed on the track. For now, without specific information on the expectations of the main players, we can only say that Charles Leclerc likes the Baku circuit a lot. As for the rest of the speculations, we’ll wait for next week, which might bring some interesting news.