How Ferrari is already tackling the 2021 downforce cut. Mark Hughes explains preparations for 2021.

Formula 1 technical contributor Mark Hughes explains how Scuderia Ferrari is already tackling the 2021 downforce cut:

“In 2021, regulations will be brought in to cut downforce by an estimated 10%, and teams are already trying to prepare.

The raised section on the outer-middle section of Ferrari’s floor is not a slot and the floor remains solid here. It will be there purely to condition the airflow as it makes its way towards the back, trying to channel as much of it as possible away from the rear tyre. This floor was briefly tried by Sebastian Vettel in each of the Friday practice sessions.

That floor incorporates also the 2021 diffuser with the regulation 50mm clipped from the bottom of its fences. These fences are turning vanes turning the airflow coming through the underfloor to give it unhindered progress, preventing it piling into the crash structure, which would reduce the airflow’s speed and therefore the downforce generated. Clipping this 50mm from the bottom of these vanes will reduce the effectiveness of the diffuser, especially at the high ride heights it will be running on low-speed corners. Teams will be seeking to claw as much of this lost downforce back as possible, but they need to know that their simulation of these changes on the CFD and wind tunnel models is accurate. Hence the physical floor test where pressure tappings could be taken through the speed range of the car and flo-viz paint could be applied to understand what the flow was actually doing.”