There’s a recurring query among the many followers of the Prancing Horse: why did Ferrari fully overhaul the format of the automotive after ending second within the 2024 Formulation 1 Constructors’ Championship, simply 14 factors behind McLaren? Within the final yr of the bottom impact rules, the Italian aspect determined to revamp its automotive, introducing 99% new parts in accordance with Ferrari group principal Frederic Vasseur himself.
This problem has been broadly debated not solely on social media but in addition amongst varied insiders: why wasn’t the SF-24 improvement continued, particularly contemplating it completed final season near the McLaren vehicles, whereas the SF-25, after three races, has plummeted to fourth place among the many prime groups, with a drastic drop in competitiveness?
Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton have already collected a 76-point deficit to McLaren within the Constructors’ Championship forward of the Bahrain Grand Prix, having scored solely 35 factors thus far in comparison with 111 from the Woking group, whereas Mercedes has earned 75 factors and Purple Bull, which runs just one automotive within the prime 10, Max Verstappen‘s, has collected 61 factors. There couldn’t have been a worse begin for the Maranello group, however the Italian aspect by no means thought of deploying a “carry over” automotive.
The arrival of Lewis Hamilton was a further push to purpose for a leap in high quality, with the idea that Ferrari might purpose for 2 World Championships earlier than the drastic regulatory modifications anticipated for the 2026 Formulation 1 season.
So why was the 2025 automotive redesigned? The reply could be very easy: the SF-24 had only a few potentialities for aerodynamic enchancment and its improvement would have been restricted in comparison with the evolution that rivals had deliberate.
The selection, due to this fact, was proper, and within the 2025 price range cap, a major quantity was allotted to approve a brand new chassis with the cockpit moved additional again and a shorter, sleeker gearbox.
The concept was to shift the load distribution barely towards the rear with a view to provide extra freedom to the aerodynamic group led by Diego Tondi. The SF-25 single-seater was designed to be below the load restrict of 800 kilograms to have the choice of reaching the proper stability by introducing ballast within the entrance wing, permitting the 0.5% weight distribution tolerance permitted by the rules to be adjusted as desired.
Moreover, the aerodynamic division had requested the chassis chief, Fabio Montecchi, to modify from the standard push rod entrance suspension to a pull rod system, already in use by Purple Bull and McLaren. The wants, due to this fact, weren’t mechanical however stemmed from the idea that wind tunnel testing might yield extra downforce for efficiency.
And evidently, the info rising from the winter simulations needed to be optimistic in comparison with the SF-24, fueling the championship hopes that have been repeatedly raised by the drivers and group leaders.
In China and Japan, we noticed F1 vehicles that have been about 1.5 seconds quicker than the earlier yr, which is a large enchancment contemplating that, normally, by the top of a regulatory cycle, just a few tenths are discovered as a result of groups are already scraping the barrel with mature vehicles. Nevertheless, the home of playing cards started to break down in the course of the preseason testing session on the Bahrain Worldwide Circuit, when it grew to become clear that McLaren was extra aggressive and Ferrari was struggling.
Initially, consideration was centered on the pull rod suspension: with the brand new setup, there may need been a necessity to regulate the setup, as very totally different stiffness changes are required. However the “problem” with the SF-25 automotive was not discovered there. Observers then shifted their focus to the rear finish, pointing to the transmission: the miniaturized carbon gearbox might undergo damaging torsions, stopping the rear from being sufficiently stiff to make the automotive responsive in path modifications, leading to annoying understeer that was closely criticized by the drivers.
The Ferrari SF-25 automotive was designed to be centered on the entrance, as each Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton choose, with nice nook entry, however in actuality, it has considerably improved in high-speed sections, due to good aerodynamic effectivity, whereas it has misplaced its traction and dealing with in low-speed corners.
So, what’s lacking for Ferrari? One may say the aerodynamic downforce that presses the automotive onto the observe floor and generates the vitality to switch to the tires. With out sufficient downforce, the group is pressured to make use of minimal floor clearance, realizing that the nearer the automotive is to the bottom, the extra the ground can create downforce. However the put on on the plank needs to be taken into consideration: the FIA permits consumption of 1 of the ten mm thickness of the plank, after which disqualifications are triggered, as occurred to Lewis Hamilton in China.
Past the embarrassment {that a} prestigious group like Ferrari shouldn’t permit, it’s evident that discovering fast countermeasures isn’t simple. The primary improve package deal for the SF-25 was scheduled for Imola, on the debut of the European season, however after the Sakhir assessments, it’s doable that the event plans have been introduced ahead primarily based on what emerged from the wind tunnel work.
So, we are able to anticipate modifications to the ground in Bahrain, together with different particulars, nevertheless it’s exhausting to assume the hole to the MCL39 and the improved Purple Bull will be closed in a single go, as a result of the 3-4 tenths hole isn’t simple to scale back, as others gained’t stand nonetheless both.
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