Ferrari was not flawless. On the contrary, the red cars did not maximize the potential of the SF-23 car in the Belgian Sprint race on Saturday. Carlos Sainz experienced a slowdown during the tire change due to a problem, and like his teammate, traffic related to the positioning of the pit stops played a role. The Ferrari drivers lost positions to Lewis Hamilton and Pierre Gasly, only regaining a position from the Mercedes man due to the penalty imposed on the British driver for the contact with Sergio Pérez.
Moreover, the tire management was not good at all. Difficulties in getting all four tire compounds up to temperature, especially maintaining the correct working range at the rear. There was so much overheating at the rear end that the Ferrari drivers had to manage, limiting performance in turns 9, 11, 12, and 14. This, in turn, slowed down the pace of the SF-23 cars.
Belgium GP 2023/F1 Sprint: Ferrari SF-23
The Sprint race of the Belgian GP became even shorter due to adverse track conditions. After several delays caused by torrential rain, the Federation obliged the teams to start with Full Wet tires in a Rolling Start procedure behind the Safety Car, which accompanied the drivers for five “formation” laps, reducing the Sprint’s duration from 15 to 11 laps. During those moments, thanks to the water lifted by the cars, the track quickly dried up, making the switch to Intermediate tires an anticipated obvious choice for many.
As soon as the Safety Car returned to the pits, the teams opened the radio lines to differentiate the strategy between their drivers – some of them, like the two Ferraris and McLarens, were too close on the track to risk a double-stack pit stop. Half of the grid, therefore, pitted at the end of the first lap, while those who stayed out (including Verstappen, Leclerc, Norris) completed a slow first lap on Full Wet tires before heading to the pits. Verstappen, who started from pole position, lost position to Piastri’s MCL60 in the process but did not complain about waiting for an “extra” lap – instead, he pointed out to his engineer how they could have taken advantage of a potential Safety Car.
Both Ferraris were among the victims of the chaos in the pit lane, with each driver losing one position. Charles Leclerc, victim of a slow pit stop, remained stationary in the pit box, waiting for “traffic,” and re-entered the track in seventh position, just behind his Maranello teammate. The Spanish driver had been among the first to pit but also lost position due to the traffic. Oscar Piastri, on the other hand, “gained” from the early pit stop and found himself in the lead after the second round of stops. As already seen in qualifying, the McLaren of the young Australian has a higher level of aerodynamic downforce – useful in mixed and wet track conditions but potentially a deficit in the race regarding top speeds.
Once the pit stops were completed, from the second lap onwards, the strategy, as usual during a Sprint race, was quite straightforward for everyone; the plan was to finish the race on Intermediate tires, and in fact, there was no significant track evolution to attempt a crossover that could have prompted teams to switch to slick tires, especially with so few laps available to make an additional stop. From a strategic standpoint, in addition to Piastri, who even though overtaken by Max Verstappen retained an excellent P2, the Alpine of Pierre Gasly stands out – the second to pit after Piastri – who smartly gained three positions and secured third place in the Sprint.
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Speaking of numbers – in fact, there was no contest. Max Verstappen maintained a pace on average about 8 tenths of a second faster than the second-placed driver. As you can see from the graph, there is a clear disparity in terms of pace – a difference accentuated by the changing track conditions between wet and dry. Carlos Sainz was on average five tenths faster than Leclerc, while Hamilton, penalized with a 5-second penalty for contact with Sergio Pérez’s RB19, was the third fastest on the track. Gasly, on the podium, lapped at the times of Carlos Sainz’s Ferrari.
Ferrari, the fourth force “distorted” by the conditions, but beware of Sunday
Ferrari appears to be the fourth force at the moment on short runs, but we must consider that the rain may have influenced the pace, as they were among the lightest on the track. The communications between the drivers and the pit wall during the Sprint race focused on monitoring the temperatures at the rear axle, a first negative sign for the Ferrari technicians. Specifically, at Turns 8, 11, 12, and 14, engineers asked their drivers to manage the tires.
Therefore, for today, Ferrari will have to hope for a dry race, which is also crucial for collecting data. Remember that the SF23 has performed well in this championship on tracks with medium to low aerodynamic load. However, if it struggles with the rear end as seen today, the race will be an uphill battle. If in the Sprint race only 11 laps were completed, today the situation with tire degradation could potentially worsen over the long distance. The speed to keep opponents behind – especially the McLarens – is there and has already been demonstrated, but it will all come down to the car’s pace and the appropriate use of the tires.
Source: Alessandro Arcari and Niccoló Arnerich for FUnoanalisitecnica.
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