Ferrari SF-25 technical evolution review: floor, suspension, and key upgrades

The development of the Ferrari SF-25 in 2025 was inevitably marked by the team quickly realizing the limitations of the car, particularly the difficulties in stabilizing ride heights, which led to Lewis Hamilton’s disqualification in China. This issue absorbed significant resources, requiring both aerodynamic interventions on the floor and modifications to the rear suspension to try to improve performance. However, these measures were insufficient to close the gap to McLaren, prompting Ferrari to halt development of the SF-25 early and focus on the 2026 car.

Floor evolution

The floor was the first area to receive updates. The first revision debuted at the Bahrain Grand Prix alongside a new diffuser, followed by further evolution introduced in Austria at the end of June. Ferrari mainly focused on extending the outer edge of the floor acting as a lateral extractor, although its geometry remained relatively simple compared to rivals. Other notable changes included adjustments to the outermost flow diverter, a critical component for isolating the Venturi channels from turbulence caused by the front wheels.

Overall, Ferrari introduced fewer floor updates in 2025 than in previous seasons, when five or more versions were common. The reasons are twofold: the looming 2026 regulations prompted an early stop to development, and the design of a new rear suspension absorbed a significant portion of the budget cap. At Maranello, mechanical and aerodynamic development ran in parallel, with the floor introduced in Austria designed to work in synergy with the rear suspension that would debut less than a month later.

Mechanical development

The new rear suspension was central to Ferrari’s efforts, aimed at solving ride-height management problems to allow the car to run closer to the ground and generate more aerodynamic downforce from the floor without overly stiff mechanical settings. To achieve this, Maranello’s technical department lowered the mounting point of the front arm of the upper suspension wishbone, increasing anti-pitch kinematics, which stabilizes forward and backward rotations of the chassis under acceleration and braking. The updates, however, arrived mid-season at the Belgian Grand Prix, together with new rear wheel flap aerodynamics.

It seems the new suspension never fully solved ride-height issues. Ferrari has never confirmed, but it is suspected that the team missed a prime opportunity to win in Hungary by increasing tire pressures during a pit stop to manage floor wear. Similarly, in Singapore, the car was raised during the weekend after excessive plank wear was noted in FP1. In Austin, Charles Leclerc stated he didn’t feel entirely comfortable with the car after the modifications, possibly due to a more stable rear end, which made rotation more challenging. Data, however, confirmed increased downforce, indicating the car could run lower. Qualifying gaps also showed slight progress towards McLaren in the second half of the season, justifying the continued use of the new suspension.

Other 2025 updates

For the first time in recent years, Ferrari introduced updates to the brake cooling ducts. In addition to simple adaptations for extreme tracks, such as Mexico, the team introduced new rear intakes in Imola and front intakes in Baku. This could indicate either issues with brake cooling or attempts to manage heat transfer between discs and tires. Under Loic Serra’s technical leadership, attention to brake ducts seems to have increased compared to previous years.

During the season, Brembo provided Ferrari with a new rear brake pad compound. Charles Leclerc used these from the Canadian Grand Prix, while Lewis Hamilton started in Belgium, initially blaming them for a lock-up at the last chicane in qualifying. He later praised the pads, improving his braking feel with the SF-25.

Wings

Ferrari introduced a new high-downforce rear wing in Barcelona, alternated with the medium-downforce version used since the start of the season. The team also reused its extensive wing inventory, recycling 2024 low-downforce wings at Spa and Monza. At the front, a new wing debuted in Barcelona to comply with FIA deformation tests. Overall, Ferrari’s 2025 development was not particularly rich in updates, and Hamilton admitted he expected more flow of novelties between factory and track. Judgement is deferred to 2026, when regulatory constraints will no longer hinder mid-season development.