During Sky Sport F1’s post-race analysis program Race Anatomy, renowned Italian journalist Umberto Zapelloni shared his thoughts on Scuderia Ferrari’s most recent technical development—specifically the new floor introduced at the Austrian Grand Prix, part of the upgrade package for the SF-25.
Umberto Zapelloni’s Comments on Ferrari’s Upgrade Strategy
The journalist expressed clear skepticism regarding the timing of the update: “Why was this new floor introduced so late in the season? It was evident from the very first race of the year—and even during the pre-season testing sessions—that Ferrari was struggling with the issue of excessive sensitivity to ride height variations,” Zapelloni said, pointing to a flaw that has compromised the car’s performance window since the very beginning of the 2025 Formula 1 season.
He went on to criticize what he described as an excessively slow implementation process for a team with Ferrari’s resources and stature: “There was an overly drawn-out execution timeline in bringing this development to the track—too long, in my opinion, for a top-tier team like Ferrari.”
Despite praising the Scuderia’s performance in Austria, he highlighted that even a flawless weekend wasn’t enough to close the gap to their rivals. “In Austria, Ferrari had a perfect weekend—everything worked exactly as it should. And yet, even during a perfect weekend, McLaren was still ahead.” – he pointed out.
Umberto Zapelloni emphasized the need for a more aggressive development approach, underlining how crucial it is for Ferrari to keep introducing new components at every opportunity: “The team must continue to bring updates. Ideally, there should be something new on the car every race weekend. Team Principal Frédéric Vasseur says that ‘execution is what matters,’ and that’s certainly true—but we’ve also seen that when technical updates arrive, the SF-25 does take a step forward.” – the Italian journalist concluded.
With this statement, Umberto Zapelloni subtly highlighted the need for both strong execution and a faster, more consistent upgrade path if Ferrari hopes to close the gap to frontrunners like McLaren and Red Bull Racing in the second half of the 2025 Formula 1 season.
And What Do You Think?
Do you agree with Umberto Zapelloni’s critical analysis of Ferrari’s strategy? Should the Scuderia have brought the new floor earlier in the year, knowing the problems were already identified during winter testing? Let us know your opinion in the comments section at the end of the article or on our social media channels: Facebook Group / Facebook Page / Instagram / X (former Twitter)
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