F1 | Ferrari: will the changes be… carried out in Japan?

After two GPs dominated by the “fear of making mistakes”, in Australia we saw another Ferrari: courageous. Determined to show the real potential of the SF-24. The result? Red double with Carlos Sainz victorious and Charles Leclerc second. Of course, Max Verstappen's retirement paved the way for the Cavallino to triumph in Melbourne, but there is no doubt that the approach has changed at Albert Park.

It must be recognized that the credit goes to Fred Vasseur. The French team principal had understood that with a defeatist attitude it is impossible to annoy Red Bull and asked for a Ferrari to attack. In the statements that preceded the trip to the land of the kangaroos he had given the sign of the line of change: “We are determined to take an aggressive approach to try to put pressure on the rivals who had the better of the two races”.

Said and done. This spring the team that Vasseur shaped according to his wishes is blossoming, after last year he had managed a project and a team that had been outlined by Mattia Binotto.

Vasseur is fighting the “fear of making mistakes” which is an atavistic evil of Sports Management: in F1 it matters to have winning drivers and a competitive single-seater, but everyone knows how important it is to bring update packages before the opponents, in the hope of breaking a certain hierarchy of values.

Let one thing be clear: in Suzuka we will see a very strong Red Bull again, where the qualities of the RB20 should shine in the initial snake of the Japanese track, but Ferrari does not want to be submissive. A small aerodynamic development was planned for the Japanese GP in view of the evolution expected for Imola, the first European race, where the SF-24 will literally change face with decidedly more extreme bellies and narrower radiator openings.

Carlos Sainz, Scuderia Ferrari

Photo by: Mark Horsburgh / Motorsport Images

In Maranello they are trying to bring forward the debut of a modified surface to the next GP: perhaps it will not be totally new, but it could introduce changes in a portion of it since this decisive element for achieving performance is now designed in a modular way and not monolithic, precisely to allow for ongoing interventions, the result of work in the wind tunnel, and to accelerate development. According to the rumors we should see something new in the central portion.

The processing of a complete fund has long and very precise times, while the intervention on a part of it is certainly easier because it is limited. In the Racing Department they will try to bring forward the plans to offer the drivers an extra tool to… put even more pressure on Red Bull.

Carlos Sainz, Scuderia Ferrari

Photo by: Mark Sutton / Motorsport Images

It is possible that surprises are also being prepared in Milton Keynes, just as McLaren, very comfortable on the demanding Japanese track, could try to get closer to the red, so it is not possible to lower the threshold of maximum concentration on all departments.

Also because with the return of China to the calendar after five years of absence it will propose the sprint format with only one free practice session before the qualifying of the race, advising against the introduction of innovations to be decided in an hour, given that it will be better to dedicate the little time available to set up the car for the Shanghai track. The same goes for Miami too, so either the changes to Suzuka are brought forward or a big package is made for Imola.

The Australian double helped boost the team's awareness that the Vasseur recipe is the right one…