Ferrari to use its two tokens on gearbox, but can’t make changes to front wing concept. AMuS report.

Ferrari began to put valuable mileage on a major update package it first brought to Austria as it bids to get its SF1000 nearer the front of the grid.

Its qualifying performance at the Hungarian Grand Prix has given it some cause for optimism that it is now on the right track, but it is still under no illusions that much more development is needed if it is going to threaten Mercedes at the front of the grid.

Ferrari’s task to push forward with improving the car is complicated, however, by the development token system that F1 has put in place for the next two years.

In a bid to reduce costs, the FIA and the team have agreed to effectively freeze the current generation of cars for the next two seasons.

While there is freedom to produce aerodynamic updates, the core components of the chassis cannot be modified – with teams only allowed to effectively change one main item in to 2021.

For Ferrari that could complicate its push forward because it is believed that one of the main focuses for its efforts to reduce drag now revolves around the central part of the car – and especially the radiator layout and sidepod packaging that is covered under the token system.

According to German automobile magazine ‘Auto Motor und Sport’, “Ferrari would actually have to make three to four major changes in the car, but they only have two tokens. They chose the gearbox to make the rear end narrower..”

If the report from ‘Auto Motor und Sport’ is true and Scuderia Ferrari will use their two tokens on the gearbox, it means that we should not expect major changes at the front, considering a nose change requires a token (because it belongs to the crash structure).

Speaking about the token system, Mattia Binotto admitted that his team would have preferred the ability to totally redevelop its car – but he understood why the cost cutting move had been put in place.

“We cannot be fully happy because, if you look where we are as Ferrari, our intention would have been to fully develop. But we understand the point and I think that’s part of the compromises that have been taken during this period. So that’s what we’ve got. We’ve chosen our tokens.” – the Ferrari boss explained.