Max Verstappen ceded his scheduled afternoon spot at Red Bull to Sergio Perez on the second day of pre-season testing, leaving Carlos Sainz's Ferrari SF-24 in the lead.
Even if we allow for a 0.6 second difference between Sainz's C4 tires and Perez's second-placed C3 tires, the Ferrari is still around 0.1 seconds faster per lap.
Highlighted: What we learned from the second day of pre-season testing in Bahrain
This 0.6 seconds is based on how far first Sainz and then RB Daniel Ricciardo found themselves when switching from C3 to C4, with each returning straight after the switch and depending on track conditions as they occurred. We have minimized the fluctuations we get.
This was a very encouraging result for Ferrari, confirming that Ferrari was once again faster in a race simulation comparison of Sainz and Perez's three stints. This is all subject to the usual conditions of comparable fuel weights and engine modes, and with the acknowledgment that Max Verstappen averaged 0.3 seconds faster than teammate Perez last year.
Sainz reported that his Ferrari was far less affected by the wind than last year's car, and the windy conditions at the Sakhir circuit really showed that. This is a very encouraging sign for the team in that it suggests that one of the car's major design goals has been achieved.
Looking back on the 2023 season, Ferrari Technical Director Enrique Caldile said:[The sensitivity] It was in the shape of the aero map. Essentially, all F1 cars lose downforce when you apply yaw. It has to do with tire wake management. The question is how much do you lose? Wind is a yaw amplifier.
“So the more you lose in yaw, the more you are affected by the wind. This has to do with driver confidence and how peaky your performance is. In the right conditions you will perform better, but On certain windy corners, drivers don’t know when a gust will occur.”
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At the launch of the new car, Mr. Kardir said: Push the limits and push the boundaries.
“We placed no design constraints other than to deliver a strong, honest race car that could replicate on the race track what we saw in the wind tunnel.”
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To achieve this, Cardill and his team went towards what became the classic “Red Bull style” body geometry (before Red Bull itself moved on from there with its current cars). ).
Instead of the thick sidepod fronts of the previous two Ferraris, the SF-24 has a traditional large undercut. This was made possible by lowering the side impact bars at the bottom of the cockpit and repositioning the radiator.
Read more: Leclerc and Sainz give verdict on Ferrari's position against Red Bull
This style of bodywork, in conjunction with underfloor channels, aims to increase the speed of airflow towards the gap between the rear tire and diffuser.
Previous fat-front sidepods attempted to accomplish the same thing in a different way: flushing the airflow around the sidepods. The front of the cliff creates a high-pressure area that diverts oncoming air away from the bodywork, creating only a low-pressure area between the wheels at the rear, drawing the flow back inward.
In fact, what Charles Leclerc and Sainz discovered was that at high speeds or in crosswinds, the rear could suddenly give up downforce, making the car difficult to drive at the limit. Cardill and his aero department believe that undercut bodywork provides more stable downforce than outwash when the car changes direction from straight ahead toward the corner on approach.
Although it's still early days, Scuderia fans should be very encouraged by what the test results so far are suggesting.
Read more: Perez reveals shock over Red Bull's RB20 concept, says field is 'much closer than people think'
