After the disappointing Bahrain GP, first race of 2023, the second weekend of the season turned out to be worse than the opening one for Scuderia Ferrari.
Given to the characteristics of the Jeddah Corniche Circuit, Ferrari arrived with good expectations, ready to do well and take back the role of second force behind Red Bull.
But the race didn’t go as planned: Ferraris underperformed, constantly struggling to find the ideal set-up, pace with the fuel load and getting the tires to work. Problems which led Ferrari to be behind the unapproachable Red Bull, but also behind Aston Martin and Mercedes.
As reported by the Italian part of ‘Motorsport.com‘, the Prancing Horse technicians identified the issues in a lack of data correlation between simulations, where the SF-23 turns very close the ground, and the track where these setting are not possible.
“Ferrari can’t afford to run at the heights from the ground for which it was designed and settings 2 millimeters higher are enough to blow up simulations. The SF-23 loses downforce and so, having less downforce, lacks grip and the tyre degradation starts.”
Despite the rumors about the new concept of the 2024 single-seater, the technicians aim to solve the current problems since they are convinced that the SF-23 has greater potential than the one showed in the first two races.
In order to prove that, the technical staff would have started to work on a new rear suspension to improve anti-squat effect as excellently done by Adrian Newey at Red Bull. In fact, on the RB19, the anti-squat effect, together with the anti-dive effect on the front, prevent height variations under acceleration or braking, which allow the car to run “low” as expected in order not to damage the floor.
“The technicians are working on a new rear suspension that could help to find a better balance. The arm should have a different anchorage to the gearbox to obtain anti-squat and prevent the rear from lowering under acceleration, maintaining the SF-23 with a constant height.”
But seems like the men in red are not just working on suspension. In Jeddah the Maranello team has also collected data on a new floor, with a new trailing edge near the rear wheel, which probably will be introduced between Imola and Barcelona.
Photo: Scuderia Ferrari
