What a phenomenal Ferrari we’ve got seen recently. A Method 1 staff that has slowly and progressively emerged from its technical deadlock, getting again on prime, as Flavio Briatore would say. Three wins within the final 5 races have definitely not come by probability, and it may have been 4 if not for a misjudgment on the Baku Metropolis Circuit in Azerbaijan. And perhaps even 5 if the Maranello staff would have higher assessed tire activation throughout qualifying on the Singapore Grand Prix. In brief, a Ferrari on the offensive. The objective for this third and ultimate spherical of the triple-header stays the identical.
Ferrari is aiming for victory in the Brazilian Grand Prix, with a powerful want to maintain the dream of the Constructors’ Championship alive. A relatively wasteful McLaren may nonetheless assist, because the staff led by Andrea Stella can also be centered on the drivers’ championship battle with Lando Norris, whereas Oscar Piastri, the Australian, has appeared virtually like a shadow of himself because the Baku weekend. Repeating success in Method 1 isn’t simple, particularly with very decided rivals. Nonetheless, the historic Italian staff is displaying nice dedication, and the worry of profitable appears to have left the staff. Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz are giving their all and elevating the Italian colours worldwide, as technical consciousness of its capabilities drives the SF-24 to new heights.
The 4.309-kilometre Interlagos circuit, formally often called Autódromo José Carlos Tempo, is a historic and extremely technical monitor for Method 1. It unfolds in a mixture of lengthy straights with technical sectors, notably the second, the place tight turns and chicanes demand a excessive stage of driving precision. Interlagos can also be well-known for its unpredictable climate, typically forcing groups to adapt the setup of the automotive. For Ferrari, presently in a really optimistic interval, this occasion represents one other probability to place the SF-24 to the take a look at on a monitor that rewards each prime velocity and traction within the extra gradual sections.
The Prancing Horse arrives in Brazil with a powerful, well-balanced aerodynamic package deal, because of an working window vast sufficient to adapt to completely different layouts on this 2024 Method 1 calendar. After latest races, the Maranello staff appears capable of finding an excellent stability on every monitor, minimizing the weaknesses of its automotive whereas totally exploiting its strengths. Because of this, in contrast to in different Method 1 seasons, tracks with completely different traits now not signify an insurmountable impediment.
Because of this, Ferrari’s confidence in its capabilities may be very excessive for the time being. Final yr, the staff selected a setup that favored prime velocity, in an effort to achieve time within the quicker sections, particularly on the principle straight and the part resulting in turns 4 and 5. This yr, following final season’s development, the purple automotive will goal to optimize prime velocity, because it did in Mexico, the place between Friday and Saturday they decreased aerodynamic load from the Monaco specification, transferring to a medium-high setup first seen on the Circuit de Catalunya in Barcelona.
For the Brazilian Grand Prix, it’s anticipated that the Italian staff will go for an strategy just like final Sunday’s, specializing in a extra versatile specification appropriate for blended circuits. In 2023, it’s value recalling that Ferrari struggled in gradual corners, notably on the first chicane, at turns 4 and 5, as a result of an endemic lack of vertical load. Decreasing the trip heights had yielded good outcomes by way of qualifying efficiency, however this alternative finally compromised total efficiency over the 300-kilometer race distance. This yr, nonetheless, the SF-24 automotive has proven higher stability at low speeds, in addition to agility on the curbs, that are additionally much less pronounced in Interlagos than in Mexico.
On the identical time, Ferrari has to concentrate on the optimum tire administration in the course of the race. The Maranello staff’s technicians and engineers have labored to construct a compromise favoring the slower sections, even when this implies sacrificing some efficiency in excessive downforce corners, like flip 12, the place in 2023 the Ferrari misplaced virtually a tenth and a half, which it then recovered with velocity within the high-speed part resulting in the end line. In quick corners, the SF-24 will search a compromise with suspension stiffness. The goal is to handle aerodynamic load for the race, the place common speeds in quick sections lower together with the required downforce.
In qualifying, the Italian F1 staff depends on the motive force’s sensitivity to handle the automotive’s rear, prioritizing prime velocity. This alternative goals to create a automotive efficient over lengthy runs and suited to tire preservation in the course of the race. Interlagos is especially demanding on tire compounds, characterised by excessive degradation, a state of affairs that in 2023 pressured drivers to handle the compounds all through the race and considerably restrict efficiency. This yr, Ferrari goals to keep away from such problematic administration.
This may even be achieved with higher management over floor and carcass temperature. The SF-24 has proven enchancment on this space, mixed with a setup designed to maintain the tires in an optimum temperature window and keep away from compromising race tempo as final yr. Within the second sector, varied sections place stress on the rear axle in traction, the place micro-slips have to be averted to ease tire administration. Ferrari begins off the Sao Paulo weekend assured, satisfied that it could actually battle for victory in Brazil.
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