Let’s start from the end. Is this the Ferrari we want to see? The answer to this question is quite simple: absolutely not! Yet, there was not much more that could be done in the recently concluded Japanese Grand Prix. The final team radio exchanges were emblematic, where Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc apologized for not being able to do better and then promised to keep pushing. A fourth place for the Monegasque, seventh for the seven-time Formula 1 world champion who gained one position.
Will the data collection expected by Ferrari team principal Frederic Vasseur be really useful? Yesterday, after the qualifying session, the French manager performed the “no rain” dance, hoping that the weather conditions for the third event of the 2025 Formula 1 season would be favorable. It was. The Ferrari team boss preferred this scenario in order to increase the data collection on the SF-25 single-seater and speed up the learning curve. But what can we understand from today’s race at the 5.807-kilometre Suzuka Circuit? Simple… Ferrari is not up to the level of the front runners.
The positive note, if we want to see the glass half full, is Charles Leclerc’s performance against Mercedes. The Brackley team remains behind with George Russell and Kimi Antonelli, beaten fairly but without much effort. This can be seen as an early milestone, considering that the German team was the main challenger to McLaren in the first two Grands Prix of the 2025 Formula 1 campaign. As for Lewis Hamilton, there’s not much to say. From eighth, he moved up to seventh.
Both Ferrari drivers, once crossing the finish line, did not hide their disappointment for a race without any highlights. There was no particular aggressiveness because the SF-25 car couldn’t offer it. Over the 300 kilometers, the car’s balance was generally good, with the lack of rotation still evident, but it was not as troublesome as when you have to push the car to the limit.
Another point we can highlight concerns the strategy. Considering the rather uneventful race and the rain that did not make an appearance, it would have been rather difficult to actually make a mistake from a strategy point of view, we agree, but the Prancing Horse showed that it can make gross errors even when it’s all easy. Today, at least, we can say that the race tactics used were correct. For Charles Leclerc, a tire change two laps later than George Russell, who had hopes of overtaking the Monegasque at that stage of the race.
A move that didn’t work for the British driver, as car number 16 returned to the track ahead of the Mercedes W16 and did not struggle to keep it behind. The situation was different for Lewis Hamilton. Given his starting position further back, the Maranello team chose to start with the white-banded tires. These were the Pirelli Hard tires, with which the Briton kept a pace roughly in line with expectations. However, the same can’t be said for the second stint.
After the only pit stop, the former Mercedes driver wanted to catch Kimi Antonelli. But the target was never achievable, as the performance of his SF-25 single-seater with the medium tires revealed all the current limits of this car. A sad, depressed, melancholic Ferrari. An SF-25 that once again watches others win. A resigned car because, as mentioned at the start, there simply wasn’t more to give.
Ferrari must now react immediately on the technical side. An evolutionary aerodynamic package should arrive at the Bahrain International Circuit in Sakhir next weekend. We are talking about the first modified version of the floor, which, in the minds of the Italian engineers and technicians, should make a significant improvement to the Maranello team’s 2025 Formula 1 car, with downforce that should be higher and more consistent, in an attempt to enhance the interaction between the mechanical and aerodynamic aspects.
Besides this, more is needed. The two McLaren cars of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri are strong but not unbeatable. Max Verstappen once again showed this today in an inferior car. The Maranello team cannot afford any mistakes, which is why they chose not to rush the new updates. But time is running out, because even though there are still 21 races left, the teams at the front will not be easing up. After all, the goal is to win one of the two titles, right? So…
A clear shift in trend is needed. A push that can shake the dust off this car that, for now, has only brought disappointment to drivers, technicians, engineers, and fans. Everything else is just talk, like the conversations we will probably hear from today until the next race in Sakhir, in the Bahrain desert. Today it is like this: desolation is present and Ferrari is as grey as the Suzuka sky.
— see video above —
