Ferrari goes on a roller coaster. There are tracks that adapt to the SF-23 where Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz can nurture some ambitions of lining up behind Red Bull and there are tracks, such as Zandvoort, where almost nothing works and the redhead has to play defensively, picking up the minimum wage to move the Constructors’ championship standings.
It is now clear to everyone that Ferrari closed the doors of the development of the disappointing SF-23 at the beginning of the summer break because the financial and human resources were allocated to project 676, i.e. the 2024 car that will be born from a sheet white, without any relation to the current red.
New chassis and transmission for a change of philosophy that repudiates the tub on the belly to move towards the winning concepts of Red Bull. In reality it will count to have a narrow body at the base by placing the lower anti-intrusion cone in a position that frees up aerodynamics, rather than having sloping sides.
The technical office is projected towards next year, so the changes that we will see appearing up to Austin will be mostly experiments aimed at defining the red 2024, rather than aimed at improving the current single-seater. This is the bitter truth that emerges from the Dutch away match, where the Scuderia had to take a… bath of humility. Carlos Sainz’s fifth place somewhat masked the deficiencies of the SF-23, bringing it back to fourth strength, after a qualifying in which the car from Maranello had plummeted to sixth place (in front were Red Bull, McLaren, Mercedes, Aston Martin and Williams).
Charles Leclerc precedes Robert Shwartzman in FP1 of the Dutch GP
Photo by: Simon Galloway / Motorsport Images
On Friday in free practice, aerodynamic comparison experiments were carried out with Robert Shwartzman in place of Sainz in FP1. The need was to find out with the young Russian with an Israeli passport whether the real SF-23 was similar in its reactions to the one the third pilot normally drives in the simulator. Data was collected and correlations were made between a fully loaded rear wing (needed at Zandvoort) and a medium loaded one.
Rather than preparing for the Dutch GP, Ferrari seemed to be engaged in a test: it transformed FP1 into a testing session because private tests are prohibited by the regulations. Madness: considering that there is a budget cap, the teams should be left free to ride on the track, perhaps renouncing some development. And maybe it would prevent a rookie like Liam Lawson from having to make his F1 debut with zero kilometers travelled…
Ferrari SF-23: here is the medium load rear wing
Photo by: Uncredited
Ferrari SF-23: here is the high-load wing that was rejected at Zandvoort
Photo by: Uncredited
The beauty is that at the end of the comparisons, the medium-downforce wing was chosen for Zandvoort with a choice in sharp contrast with the rest of the grid. Result: the Ferrari was clearly the fastest in the single straight, but it was undriveable in the rest of the track because the drivers didn’t have enough downforce. A contradiction of terms, difficult to explain: there is no vertical thrust, but the wing with the least resistance is chosen. Why?
The answer is relatively simple: the loaded rear wing only generates drag, while the rear end does not produce the necessary downforce. Not only that, but the single-seater becomes difficult to balance because the front is already in a configuration with the flaps at maximum incidence and you can’t go any further. The performance speaks for itself: the loaded Ferrari is slower. Better to choose the medium wing and unload the front a little to find a balance that is the least bad, but this means entrusting the drivers with a very difficult car to drive, with sudden changes in behavior from oversteer to understeer.
Charles Leclerc, Ferrari SF-23, makes a long run with an undriveable red
Photo by: Erik Junius
The repeated long runs of the reds at turn 1 are understandable as evidence of a very critical car in braking. In short, the Hungarian lesson (where Ferrari had gone to aim for pole!) had taught us nothing, given that the problems were very similar. And let us prepare, therefore, for another crisis announced in Singapore. But is it possible that Ferrari arrives at the end of August without having an adequate wing for highly loaded tracks?
It shouldn’t be surprising if Leclerc slammed the SF-23 in qualifying trying to go beyond the limit of the car. The simulations of the Cavallino say that if the Monegasque had closed the lap, he would have entered the second row, covering the flaws of a car that is a bin with his talent.
Enrico Cardile, Ferrari technical director at Zandvoort
Photo by: Dom Romney / Motorsport Images
But both Fred Vasseur and Enrico Cardile should take a ride on the SF-23 (perhaps in the simulator) to realize that an unmanageable and unpredictable car can cause an accident that forced the replacement of the chassis and gearbox on Charles’s car. The Prince, even if he covered up his nervousness in his words, has lost faith in the machine and relies only on talent to make a difference.
If Saturday’s briefing isn’t the result of his responsibility, the same cannot be said for Sunday’s hit with Oscar Piastri: he broke his front wing and a piece of the side bulkhead got stuck in the floor, causing damage that cost 60 efficiency points. Hugeness: Sainz reached 331.4 km/h at the speed trap, while Leclerc did not go beyond 316.2 km/h. Withdrawal is inevitable. But if Ferrari wants to challenge Mercedes to be second at the end of the season, it must regularly bring two drivers to the points. Otherwise it’s better to change symphony…
Carlos Sainz, Ferrari SF-23, leaves the garage after a pit stop
Photo by: Simon Galloway / Motorsport Images
Carlos is skilled in controlling risks and maximizing his performance at the limit of the car, while Leclerc is not satisfied and makes more mistakes. The result is that the Spaniard is once again ahead of the first undeclared guide. All of this generates tension. It is inevitable.
Luckily he turns the page going immediately to Monza. Given the premises, the Italian GP should offer us a more competitive Ferrari, perhaps capable of giving the Prancing Horse fans a few jolts. Each appointment on the calendar will have its own story. If Aston Martin and McLaren can aim for continuity of results, Ferrari is condemned to be in swings: the Temple of speed could play in the red’s favor, Singapore not.
While Cardile in Maranello lays the foundations for the 2024 car, Ferrari will try to navigate one race after another on sight, with no hope of capitalizing on the work done for this sclerotic and unpredictable redhead. At Monza the car could also go fast, but the Cavallino fans shouldn’t have too many illusions about the rest of the championship: the lean season will not have ended in Holland. Time will tell…
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