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Ferrari will stick to its new floor update that has caused bouncing since its introduction at F1’s Spanish Grand Prix.
The Scuderia have confirmed that a modified version of its latest floor update will arive at this weekend’s Hungarian Grand Prix. The Maranello team have struggled with high-speed bouncing issues in recent races.
Before the update package, Charles Leclerc took his maiden home race win in Monaco – Ferrari seemed to be going on an upwards trajectory. However, the Scuderia brought a new floor update to Barcelona, hoping to build on its momentum.
Instead, the new update left both drivers Leclerc and Carlos Sainz lacking confidence with their updated SF-24. Not only the drivers losing confidence, the team were visibly losing time to its competitors.
Over the last three races, only one podium has been scored. Sainz scraped a podium finish in Austria – thanks to the collision between race leaders Max Verstappen and Lando Norris. However, the team’s next best result was fifth.
Leclerc has especially struggled – finishing outside the points in Austria and Britain and only achieving fifth in Spain.
Factory analysis after Britain
After practice at the British Grand Prix, the Scuderia decided to revert to its older floor – which was introduced at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix.
After a disappointing result at Silverstone, the team said they would analyse the situation thoroughly. The Maranello team had to decide whether to build on with the new floor or revert back to the old one.
Reverting to the old floor would cost the team – they would have wasted valuable money in the cost cap. After thorough analysis, Team Principal Fred Vasseur said the new floor does increase performance. Therefore, it is worth perservering with.
However, modifications will be brought to minimise the bouncing issue that has been experienced by both drivers. Vasseur confirmed the team’s analysis, speaking ahead of this weekend’s race:
“The week’s break prior to Hungary has allowed us to take an in-depth look at all the data from the past three races.”
“We found that our latest upgrade package did indeed bring the expected benefits in terms of aero points. However, it also had side effects that meant the car was actually more difficult to drive.
“We have worked hard in the factory and so, in Budapest, we will bring an evolution of the floor which we reckon will give the drivers a car that will allow them to drive to the best of their abilities.
“This season, we are fighting to the nearest hundredths of a second and so Charles and Carlos must be able to give of their best and have confidence in the car if they are to get the best possible results in the race, but even more importantly, in qualifying when they need to push the car right to the limit.
“I am confident the package we bring to the Hungaroring will allow us to be frontrunners.”
Ferrari will hope to return to fighting for race wins and pole positions. The team firmly believe they are currently the clear fourth-quickest team – well behind the top three.
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