With just one day until the 2024 F1 cars return to the we Sakhir circuit, this time for the first free practice session in view of the Bahrain Grand Prix, the anticipation rises to finally see the real on-track performance of the cars. The three days of testing we left behind have provided both significant certainties and points of question. The most important certainty concerns the Ferrari SF-24 and the progress made compared to the 2023 car. Project 676 was born with the goal of abolishing the limits and weaknesses of the SF-23, and the car that will start this season will be only a “version 1.0,” a foundation on which to open development paths impossible to pursue with the old project.
The car, designed in a “low-profile” winter as desired by Fred Vasseur, has shown excellent results in terms of reliability and design quality in Bahrain. The car is liked by the drivers, especially Charles Leclerc, who confirmed the SF-24 seems to react as the team wants, while also admitting that it is difficult to judge the true level of competitiveness for the moment. Overall the impressions are are certainly better than a year ago, according to the Monegasque.
Better on Sundays than Saturdays: The Ferrari SF-24 is designed to optimize performance in the race
We remember the old SF-23 as a car that stressed the tires, was too sensitive to external factors and was difficult to put in the ideal operating window. Frederic Vasseur himself has expressed himself with a certain serenity about it, confirming that the Maranello team’s first purpose was to get an SF-24 much more stable, not sensitive to changing external conditions and easy to drive.
However, the old Maranello car always performed well on a single lap; the seven pole positions in 2023 are tangible proof that the red car was much more comfortable with an empty tank and new soft tires. Throughout 2023, with the necessary corrections, Maranello technicians worked to counterbalance and have a more balanced car in performance between qualifying and the race. This year’s car is designed to be more solid, especially in race conditions, thanks to the aerodynamic load achieved with the new floor and new appearance. The long runs we saw in Bahrain showed that the car can perform well on tires without significant performance degradation. The Sakhir track is a good test for degradation and overheating of the rear axle, especially during daylight hours when the asphalt exceeds 30 degrees, as explained by F1 expert Rosario Giuliana for formu1a.uno.
According to what has been learned in Maranello, they expect to be closer to Red Bull in the race than in qualifying, thanks to the increased aerodynamic load. Also at Haas, the team’s technical director hinted that with the new car philosophy, they could be better in race conditions. This is contrary to both Ferrari’s and Haas’s past seasons.
Charles Leclerc’s skills on a single lap should not be underestimated, as the Monegasque is often able to overperform compared to the real potential of the car on a single lap. Ferrari, as much as possible, has tried to maintain the excellent qualities on a single lap, mainly due to the aerodynamic efficiency of the old SF-23, but also to a very strong Ferrari Power Unit in terms of internal combustion unit. There is still a gap to be filled both in qualifying and in the race compared to Red Bull, which we will finally be able to see at the end of the first race weekend.
Ferrari expects to be the second force in Bahrain, but there is caution
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The third place achieved by Ferrari in the constructors’ standings last year, narrowly losing the final sprint in favor of Mercedes, left a bitter taste. The old SF-23 had shown, beyond the victory in Singapore, to be consistently the first car hierarchically after Max Verstappen and his Red Bull RB19 in the second half of the season. For 2024, Fred Vasseur’s approach was to avoid setting limits or impossible goals, without losing sight of the starting point. Removing Red Bull from the dominator’s throne in a single winter is unthinkable, but in Maranello, they worked to at least narrow the gap from the RB19. With the RB20, in Milton Keynes, they raised the bar even further.
After the tests, it seems that there are no doubts that, at least for now, there is still some technical gap. Sounding the internal moods in Maranello, the minimum goal for the red team for this first part of the season is to be the second force alone, and to fight for more chances of victory with a Red Bull under more pressure. It is not clear how much the RB20 in the hands of Max Verstappen has been kept in check. There is enough uncertainty about the gap at the start of this championship. Estimates from Maranello on race pace and with track evolution say that the RB20 has over 5 tenths more pace with Max Verstappen. There is also some “caution” in judging the real potential of the Mercedes W15.
Fred Vasseur admitted that he expects the various top teams to be very close to each other. Bahrain is still a quite specific track, and the tests are less indicative than what could be appreciated when the sessions were held in Barcelona. So, being the second force alone in Bahrain, as seems likely, will not be enough, but it will be necessary to evaluate the performance of the SF-24 at least until Suzuka.
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