Miami: Ferrari optimizes stability in high-speed sections, difficult mechanical compromise in slow corners

Florida is ready to host a Formula 1 Grand Prix for the third time. This weekend, the series will be busy on the track that winds around the imposing Hard Rock Stadium; a track that will also highlight the engine power of the various single-seaters. After the first sector characterized by a snake area composed of fast corners, two long straights connected by some slower corners are present. In these latter corners, mechanical grip and traction abilities of the different cars composing the grid are fundamental.

Red Bull remains the favorite team for victory. However, it is worth noting how the circuit in the United States has some characteristics quite similar to the Albert Park circuit in Melbourne, a competitive scenario where Ferrari has the chance to get closer to the reigning world champion team. The Prancing Horse comes from a far-from-easy weekend, where the difficulty in “warming up” the tires has made the red car regress in performance compared to McLaren. The team led by Andrea Stella, in fact, played the role of the second force optimizing the tire usage window of the MCL38 to the fullest in Shanghai.

Analyzing the circuit that will host the next round of the 2024 Formula 1 championship, we can see how the Miami track is composed of 19 corners, 7 to the right and 12 to the left, with a total length of 5412 meters. The first race of the season on American soil once again includes the Sprint Race, a particular format that complicates the work of technicians, drivers and engineers. The teams will have only one hour of free practice to verify the progress of the work done on their cars, with the need to find a setup suitable for the track already from the data collected in the simulator.

In general, the cars will adopt a configuration with medium aerodynamic downforce. Precision will be required in entry into fast corners, through stiffer front-end setups that make the car more “pointing” and consequently reactive on the front-end. This entails the search for a compromise between the slow and fast sections that characterize the first sector; therefore, efforts are made to favor load generation by limiting drag to maximize efficiency. Pirelli C2 Hard, C3 Medium, and C4 Soft tires are the chosen compounds. The strategy will be with one pit stop for most teams, but two stops are also possible.

The second portion of the track that makes up the Miami circuit is characterized by the straight stretch with the throttle completely open, almost 1.5 kilometer long, leading to the braking zone of turn 11. In this section, we will undoubtedly notice which cars will be the most efficient and who has the best engine and DRS. During braking, the drivers decelerate by about 240 kilometers per hour to start the slow section: 600 meters of track where mechanical grip on the rear axle and the stability of the car in direction changes are crucial.

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In addition to this, during acceleration, the drivers will need to be gentle on the throttle pedal to avoid oversteer generated by a setup more focused on the front end. At turn 11, the drivers will anticipate the entry into the corner to reach the first of the two apex points of turn 12 on exit. In this long-radius, medium-speed turn, the aim is indeed to stay as close as possible to the inside wall to cover the shortest distance. Turn 13 is taken flat out, immediately aiming for the right side of the track on exit to prepare for turns 14 and 15. In this change of direction, the drivers maximize the use of the curbs to improve minimum speed at mid-corner. Turn 16 concludes the slow section and is approached by delaying the apex to maximize traction onto the straight.

The final third of the US track is undoubtedly the simplest if we look at the layout of the Miami International circuit. From a purely planimetric point of view, it is evident how the straight of about 1200 meters connecting turn 16 and turn 17, once again highlights the speed capabilities of the cars. This area of the track is among the best to attempt an overtake on opponents if closing a pass during the race. The braking zone of turn 17 is undoubtedly the most demanding, in terms of braking, of the entire US circuit. A corner that requires a significant deceleration estimated at about 270 km/h in 115 meters. This corner is the slowest on the circuit and is taken in second gear. The drivers, as with turn 16, will delay the apex before anticipating the throttle opening onto the final straight that leads to the finish line.

The two Ferrari SF-24 cars are fully intent on optimizing the special-flavored American weekend at the Miami International Autodrome in Florida. A sort of celebration for the Maranello team, which, through a dedicated livery, will pay homage to the feats of the Prancing Horse in the United States of America. Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc are charged up, just like the entire working group, bolstered by studies conducted on the simulator field in the Ferrari Racing Department over the last week. The number one mistake not to repeat is tire management, a headache that has recently caused several performance issues for the Italian cars.

The Miami International Autodrome circuit is inherently complete, this means that in order to optimize the setup, various compromises at the mechanical and aerodynamic levels must be sought. In the first sector, we find fast, wide-radius corners. Among these, turns 3 and 6 are flat-out. These corners will inherently inject a lot of energy into the Pirelli tires. Overall, a good level of downforce is needed in this section to make the car stable and well-balanced between the two axes. Given the presence of various straight sections, teams will use medium downforce configurations. Consequently, they will tend to reduce the vertical force generated by the rear wing in combination with the beam-wing.

This aspect tends to shift the aerodynamic balance more forward than the ideal point. Hence, having a lot of downforce from the floor will be crucial. The cars that can generate more downforce with ground effect will certainly enjoy an advantage. In addition to the amount of downforce, the stability of the load produced at various speed ranges will also be crucial. As mentioned, the American circuit also features slower sections that require softer suspension elements, resulting in greater variations in roll angle.

The mechanical compromise between the slow and the fast sections must therefore necessarily be carefully evaluated and identified. Ferrari is very stable in the flat-out, wide-radius corners, like turns 3 and 6. Basically, despite the fact that the SF-24 possesses an excellent level of downforce, in the Formula 1 current season, the Maranello single-seater has shown less competitiveness in the slow corners compared to the past. With project 676, the Italian technicians have tried to stiffen the car, finding greater load stability derived from the floor. However, from a purely mechanical point of view, they have lost a bit of grip overall.

Ferrari, SF-24 with medium downforce in Florida

The red team will have to construct the lap time differently compared to what was done in the past two editions of the Miami Grand Prix, where it excelled in the slow corners and aimed to optimize the fast sections. At the rear, we will see the usual version of the wing, thus, through the setup, finding the correct balance between downforce and end of straight speed. In the Chinese Gran Prix at the 5.451-kilometre Shanghai International Circuit, this equation was good between these two parameters, an interaction nullified by the poor activation of the Pirelli compounds. Adjusting the downforce around the estimated optimal value from simulations and the Maranello team’s past experience is done through the wing angle and the specific choice for the beam-wing.

From a mechanical standpoint, the Ferrari technicians might find themselves in a bit of difficulty because shifting the mechanical balance towards the rear would mean having to soften the second axis too much. Consequently, this aspect could penalize the generation of load, risking producing fluctuations in the floor that reduce stability and therefore predictability of the SF-24 car in the fast corners. At the driver-in-the-loop simulator, the Maranello engineers of the SF-24 have tested various compromise setups that can find the optimum among these various factors in view of the Miami Grand Prix.

As always, the work must be maximized once the cars hit the track for the first free practice sessions, also evaluating competitors and gaps in each sector. If Ferrari manages to gain a lot in the first sector, the lap balance could favor the red car even without optimization of the slow corners. However, generally, the lap time is largely built in the more driven areas, as the travel time is longer. The last fundamental parameter will be the tire issue, taking into consideration the fact that all the potential grip of a car must be exploited by the tires.

We know that Scuderia Ferrari has suffered several problems in activating the compounds, especially the harder ones. The SF-24 tends to generate less energy on the tires compared to previous red cars. This is certainly a positive aspect for how today’s Pirellis must be exploited, especially in terms of race pace. In China, the fairly cool track conditions did not help the activation of the front compounds at the start of the lap, an aspect on which Ferrari struggled quite a bit. This key problem should not present itself in Miami considering that the temperatures of the track surface will be high.

Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc will therefore have to focus on the more factual warm-up strategy in the outlap. A slower conduct will be seen in order to keep the tire in the ideal window throughout the entire lap. The activation of the Pirelli tires, which occurs thanks to the hysteresis cycle, is determined by temperature and stress frequency and will be easier to achieve for the Maranello team. Ferrari has chosen to take care of the traversal of turns 3 and 6, which as mentioned are flat-out. These two corners will be strategic for tire management. In the slow corners, on the other hand, the two red cars will try to preserve the rear axle in order to avoid excessive unwanted tire slippage.

Ferrari SF-24