Like other teams, Scuderia Ferrari has diverted most of the resources to the 2022 Formula 1 car, but this has not prevented the Maranello technicians from carrying out new aerodynamic updates on the SF21. The development of the 2021 car has mainly focused on data analysis, in order to arrive at a better understanding of the behavior of the single-seater useful for deciding increasingly effective set-up choices. In terms of components, however, the car is largely the same as the one which made its debut in Bahrain at the beginning of the season, with the exception of the floor with the “az cut” introduced at Imola and some adjustments made to the cape in the area below the nose.
In view of the race at the Paul Ricard circuit, Scuderia Ferrari has created a new front wing, which is therefore added to the previous updates limited in number by the resources directed to the 2022 project. Thanks to the images taken in the pit lane by the Spanish journalist Albert Fabrega, it is possible to analyze in preview the characteristics of the latest update developed in Maranello.
From the front view, the changes made in the upper part of the cascade profiles stand out, where the adjustable profile has been widened at the expense of the fixed flap anchored to the external endplate band. Among the various possible repercussions, the modification has an impact on the procedures for adjusting the aerodynamic balance of the car. The greater adjustable surface, with the same variation in the load at the front, requires less adjustment of the incidence of the profile itself.
In the area of the wing near the vertical strip of the endplate, it is also noted how the external carbon appendage has been shaped differently. In the new specification the arched section for the channeling of flows is wider and extends up to the endplate itself, while in the previous version there was also a horizontal portion.
Rather than increasing the aerodynamic load released at the front, the interventions on the front wing aim to correct the management of flows and eddies directed to the rear, also aiming at a more effective use of the floor and therefore at increasing the load released by the underbody. In light of the important aerodynamic restrictions on the floor and diffuser introduced by the 2021 technical regulation, other teams have also aimed to adapt the aerodynamics starting from the management of the flows from the front, as demonstrated by the new front wings introduced during the current season by Alpine and McLaren.
The Maranello team also brought the previous version of the wing to the Paul Ricard, thus having the possibility of carrying out comparative tests during free practice to subsequently decide on the specification to be used in the race. For Ferrari, the validation of the actual advantages of the new aileron in relation to the predictions also becomes important in view of the 2022 Formula One season, in order to confirm the representativeness of the simulation methodologies and the correlation between track and wind tunnel data.
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