The 677 chassis has proven to be a fundamentally flawed project that Scuderia Ferrari is now attempting to revive. The question remains: will the introduction of a new rear suspension system be sufficient to rejuvenate the SF-25 and return the Italian team to the top step of the Formula 1 podium?
By the midpoint of the 2025 Formula One World Championship, it has become increasingly clear that the Ferrari SF-25 has not lived up to the high expectations that accompanied its launch during the past winter. Following a 2024 campaign marked by inconsistency but culminating in a strong finish—with Ferrari narrowly missing out on the Constructors’ Championship, partly due to McLaren’s suboptimal race management—the hopes were high for a car that could finally fight consistently for victories.
However, the results tell a different story. The SF-25 has only achieved a few podium finishes, and even those seem to have come more from race-day circumstances and favorable conditions than from genuine, repeatable performance. This meager haul has prompted Scuderia Ferrari to reassess several key decisions in the car’s development, as evidenced by the crucial test scheduled for today at the Mugello circuit.
The new suspension setup that will be tested during a critical filming day by both Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc is designed to amplify the strengths of the SF-25 while minimizing the negative impact of its underlying flaws. But what exactly are the merits and drawbacks of the 677 project?
Ferrari SF-25: What Has Worked Well
Aerodynamic Efficiency at High Speeds: A Tangible Strength
One of the most convincing traits of the SF-25 lies in its aerodynamic performance at high speed. The Maranello-built car has shown impressive effectiveness on fast sections of various circuits, both in corners and on the straights. This capability stems from a well-developed floor that generates significant downforce with minimal aerodynamic drag. The result is a stable aerodynamic balance, ideal for tracks where high-energy airflow rewards sophisticated and finely tuned solutions. Silverstone was a prime example of this, as long as the track remained dry.
In such conditions, the behavior of the SF-25 resembles that of benchmark cars like the McLaren MCL39, offering strong aerodynamic stability, excellent DRS efficiency, and well-balanced handling in medium-to-high speed corners. The updated floor introduced mid-season yielded promising feedback, especially in terms of rear-end stability and airflow management.
A Reliable and Efficient Power Unit
The second key strength of the Ferrari SF-25 is its power unit. In terms of outright power and energy recovery, the PU066/10 remains one of the most competitive engines on the grid. The hybrid deployment is linear and precisely tuned, allowing drivers to push without needing to resort to conservative engine maps. Unfortunately, on many occasions, drivers have had to employ “lift and coast” strategies—not due to engine deficits, but for reasons tied to aerodynamic and mechanical preservation, particularly to limit plank wear.
One standout feature of Ferrari’s hybrid system is its regenerative capability under braking and part-throttle phases, which ensures sustained power delivery even in sections with fluctuating loads. Additionally, thermal efficiency has improved compared to the previous season, allowing for more aggressive aerodynamic packaging due to reduced cooling requirements.
Tire Management and Race Strategy: Strong Over Long Runs
Another positive aspect of the SF-25 is its ability to manage tire degradation effectively, especially over race distances. While not particularly dominant over a single lap (as will be discussed later), the car manages tire wear well during the middle and later stages of races. This often allows Ferrari to implement one-stop strategies without significant compromises in race pace.
The thermal management of the tires appears to be well-calibrated, with limited degradation, particularly on medium and hard compounds. From the halfway point of a race onward, the SF-25 typically maintains a consistent pace, sometimes even outperforming rival cars on equivalent stints.
Effective Updates and Development Potential
Despite its clear weaknesses, the Scuderia has earned credit for responding with technically sound updates. The revised floor and diffuser introduced during the spring helped improve the car’s balance, especially in direction changes and braking zones.
Moreover, Ferrari introduced a pull-rod front suspension setup—marking a radical shift from the previous push-rod configuration—aimed at increasing front-end downforce and enhancing turn-in. However, this adjustment also disturbed the equilibrium between front and rear, complicating the management of the car’s center of pressure at various ride heights. Although not yet fully optimized, the updated package shows developmental promise—provided Ferrari can address the structural instabilities that currently limit performance.
Ferrari SF-25: What Has Not Worked
Structural Weaknesses: Lacking Mechanical Grip and Fragile Balance
The Achilles’ heel of the Ferrari SF-25 is its lack of mechanical grip, especially in low-speed corners and during tight direction changes. The car struggles to rotate effectively at corner entry, forcing drivers to delay throttle application and compromising corner-exit speed. This shortcoming is most apparent in qualifying, where the car, despite running low fuel, cannot fully exploit the soft compound due to inadequate tire temperature and grip.
To make matters worse, the rear-end balance of the SF-25 is highly sensitive, making the car extremely responsive to setup tweaks and weather changes. Even slight variations in ambient temperature or wind can significantly affect traction and cornering behavior. This makes it challenging to find a consistent performance window throughout an entire race weekend.
Extreme Setups and Costly Trade-offs
In order to remain competitive, the Ferrari SF-25 demands aggressive setup choices and very low ride heights. This, however, increases the risk of plank damage—especially with full fuel loads, as seen during the Chinese Grand Prix. Raising the ride height to protect the floor results in a loss of downforce, which negatively affects balance and cornering speed.
This ongoing compromise between performance and structural reliability is a significant limitation under the current technical regulations, which require predictable and stable aerodynamic performance over full race distances.
Struggles Over a Single Lap: The Qualifying Conundrum
As previously noted, one of the most pressing issues for the SF-25 lies in its poor performance on push laps during qualifying, particularly with soft tires. The car struggles to quickly bring the tires into the optimal temperature window, and its unstable balance makes its behavior unpredictable. This increases the likelihood of driver errors and, more crucially, consistently prevents the team from maximizing its potential during the critical Saturday sessions.
As a direct result, both Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton often find themselves starting further back on the grid than expected, forcing them to adopt more conservative and less effective race strategies in an effort to recover lost ground.
Ferrari SF-25 Mugello Test: New Rear Suspension Under Evaluation
To address some of the issues outlined above, Ferrari is back on track today, Wednesday 16 July, at the Mugello circuit for a filming day with significant technical implications. The team will evaluate a new rear suspension configuration developed to improve traction and stability in low-speed corners.
The goal is twofold: to increase mechanical grip through enhanced suspension kinematics and to reduce the rear-end’s sensitivity to changes in setup and aerodynamic load. If the data gathered proves positive, this new suspension could be introduced in the upcoming races as part of an upgrade package aimed at salvaging the second half of the 2025 Formula 1 season.
The Ferrari SF-25 is a technically ambitious Formula 1 car, but it remains unbalanced and inconsistent in its on-track behavior. While the solutions implemented so far show potential, the integration of aerodynamics, mechanical grip, and aggressive setup philosophy has yet to yield a cohesive and winning package. The Scuderia must soon decide whether to continue developing the current platform or redirect all efforts toward the 2026 regulations.
In the meantime, the Mugello test represents a crucial opportunity to gather valuable data, validate new components, and potentially begin a turnaround that could redefine Ferrari’s 2025 campaign in the second half of the season.
— see video above —
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