“Technical Director” Fred Vasseur is having a particularly… hot summer. While waiting for the figure who will lead the technical relaunch of the Prancing Horse team to arrive in Maranello by the end of September (we have called him Mister X), it is up to the French team principal to make immediate choices, following a line that had been traced at a programmatic level.
The Racing Department is in a very delicate phase because in these days a series of projects are being defined, all very important. In the immediate future, the dark evil of the SF-24 is being sought: the Barcelona update package is not working (some speak of a loss of load of 20 points when the porpoising starts to bounce in the fast corners) and an aerodynamic dress must be decided to solve the problem, according to the indications that emerged from the British GP.
Carlos Sainz, Ferrari SF-24
Photo by: Erik Junius
The retired Carlos Sainz, “voice of truth”, believes that the lesson of Silverstone has served to understand the problems of the red and now we must give time to the aerodynamic staff of Diego Tondi to put things in order that are not working. In the meantime, in Hungary we will see the Ferrari 3.0 (Barcelona) and in Spa-Francorchamps we will return to the 2.0 version (Imola) waiting for the right mix to arrive in Zandvoort to compete in the second part of the championship as a protagonist capable of challenging Mercedes and, on some tracks, even Red Bull and Mercedes.
In reality, the technicians’ efforts are already focused on the 677, the project acronym of what within the Gestione Sportiva is the “Lewis car”. Next year’s car was supposed to be a development of the SF-24, keeping costs to a minimum, because the bulk of the budget will be allocated to the 2026 single-seater.
The current red car is showing its limits, so Fabio Montecchi, Chief Project Engineer, Corrado Onorato, Deputy Chief Designer, and Diego Tondi, Head of aerodynamic development, to put it the way Maranello likes to, are the engineers who are following the 677, a single-seater that will no longer have anything in common with the one that is racing.
This is an important aspect to underline because in Maranello they have decided to sever the umbilical cord of the SF-24 with the 2026 car. A clean break with the era of Enrico Cardile (leaving for Aston Martin) that had already been decided a few months ago.
McLaren MCL38: Pull rod front suspension and rearward-shifted steering
Picture of: George Piola
On Motorsport.com we anticipated that the 677 will switch to a pull rod front suspension layout following the most modern concepts of Red Bull and McLaren, while at the rear it will remain faithful to the current configuration, without being tempted by the push rod.
We said that the bodywork will be completely redone, not only at the front to house the suspension kinematics on the chassis floor and with the steering that could be moved back in perfect MCL38 style (the Woking car is the new model that Maranello is inspired by), but also because the layout of the car will change with a revised weight distribution, in an attempt to find the best compromise in the use of the tyres.
Ferrari this year was the team that collaborated most with Pirelli in the development of the 2025 tires. And if it is true that the test data has always been shared by the sole supplier with all the teams, it is equally true that having direct feedback from the regular drivers is an advantage that can provide useful indications in the gestation of the new tires that will have to be less sensitive to overheating.
Detail of the gearbox of the Ferrari SF-24
Picture of: George Piola
According to some rumors, therefore, Hamilton’s first Ferrari will have a shorter gearbox, with a slight shift of the engine towards the rear because the mouth of the sidepods and, consequently, also the cockpit will be set back. Following the concepts of McLaren and Red Bull, the aim is to move the front wheel away from the sides in an attempt to reduce the negative effect of wake turbulence.
The 677, therefore, is engaging the Prancing Horse staff in a more demanding way than one might have thought and it should not be surprising if the SF-24 will have limited development in the second part of the championship. From 1 October, Loic Serra, the French ex-Mercedes driver strongly desired by Vasseur, will arrive at the Gestione Sportiva: he will be the technician who will have the task of “thinking” the 678 according to the indications that “Mister X” will give him and according to the constraints that will derive from the power unit area commanded by Enrico Gualtieri.
In Maranello they have no intention of “abandoning” the SF-24, given that there is still half the championship to go, but there is no doubt that the priorities have gone towards the 677…
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