It was the big day for the Ferrari SF-23, the car with which Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz will go in search of a world championship title, the first from the now distant 2008 Constructors’ Championship for Scuderia Ferrari. Presented at the well-known Fiorano venue, it immediately covered the first 15 km with just a few laps each for the two main drivers. Also on the short circuit located behind the Maranello team factory, tomorrow there will be the first real running, the now classic 100 km allowed for a filming day.
Ferrari worked hard on the 675 project, having given up on the development of the previous car well before the winter break, once it understood that the reliability problems that emerged did not allow it to be able to fight againt Red Bull for the World Championships.
A choice taken also considering how much the budget cap can affect the design and development of a modern Formula 1 car. If from an aesthetic point of view there would not seem to be any huge innovations, the ‘devil is always in the details’. “The SF-23 is an evolution of the 2022 car, even if it has actually been completely redesigned. From an aerodynamic point of view, for example, we have tried to increase the aerodynamic load to better adapt to the new technical regulations and the new balance required.” Enrico Cardile confirmed after the official launch of the 2023 Formula 1 challenger.
The SF-23 already generates more downforce than the late-season F1-75, even with the regulation limitations introduced by the Federation to counter porpoising.
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Ferrari SF-23: a lot of budget was invested on the front
Important changes have affected the front of the car, in which Ferrari has invested a lot of the available budget, more than in the rear. The nose remained narrower than the full volume allowed by the technical regulations and was shortened, leaving the underside of the mainplane exposed. The front wing, as already seen on many other cars, is very centrally loaded while on the outside it has an accentuated outwash function, to remove the dirty air coming from the spinning wheel from the car. With the raised floor edges, keeping out the dirty air generated by the front wheels is a priority for the 2023 Formula 1 cars. It is no coincidence that Ferrari has fitted on its 2023 Spec front wing as many as 5 of those vortex generators rejected on the Mercedes car in Austin’s. It would seem strange, given that they were thought to have been banned, but to a question posed directly by Formu1a.uno to Enrico Cardile, the answer was very clear: “They are legal”. Going deeper into the topic, it would seem that Ferrari has managed to explain to the Federation that these elements respect certain geometric measures and, considering that the new regulation no longer speaks of a primary purpose, the Italian side was able to have them homologated. But we will certainly talk about it again.
Important changes have also affected the front suspension, as confirmed by Enrico Cardile himself. “One of the biggest changes we’ve made on the SF-23 is to the front suspension, with the steering being moved down. The front wing is also very different from that of the F1-75 as is the nose. While speaking of the bodywork, it’s a much more extreme version,” explained the Italian technician.
In fact, while the attachment points of the upper suspension elements have been raised, the steering rod has been integrated into the lower wishbone, similar to what Red Bull and McLaren did on their 2022 cars. The result is a suspension that is certainly much cleaner aerodynamically, with the aim of conveying the flow that rises from the front wing towards the initial part of the Venturi tunnels (floor).
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