Ferrari seems to have reduced its tire overheating issue

One of the problems with Ferrari last year was tire management and the narrow operating window. The Scuderia seems to have worked well on this issue since its driver Carlos Sainz Jr explains that he can finally attack with his new car, the SF-24.

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Rédigé par Par

Last year, Ferrari was very competitive on one lap, matching the RB19 of Max Verstappen and achieving several surprising qualifications with 6 pole positions, especially towards the end of the season. However, during the race, the SF75 seemed difficult to use with excessive tire wear and the inability to attack.

Carlos Sainz feels a significant improvement on his side, and even though the gap was substantial at the end of the Bahrain Grand Prix, the first race of the 2024 season, he is notably encouraged by this feeling.

« It’s a bit of a relief because the last race where I was able to attack was in Austria and that was 13 or 14 races ago. And then the rest of the races from last year, you just had to manage, look in the rear-view mirrors, control your pace. And there were very few opportunities to overtake people. I love racing and I love overtaking, being aggressive, attacking. And with last year’s car, it was simply impossible to do. » confirms the Spanish driver.

« I remember saying at the car launch that this year, I wanted a car to race with and attack others without worrying too much about the tires. And that’s exactly what we got. » Carlos Sainz is satisfied.

In Bahrain, it’s the only Ferrari to have mounted the podium, with Red Bull achieving a one-two with Max Verstappen over 20 seconds ahead of Sergio Perez and 25 seconds ahead of the Ferrari. The gap, however, is less significant than last season, when Red Bull had finished the race with a 48-second lead over Carlos Sainz, who had then been unable to reach the podium.

« I had an attacking race, a really good race pace and from there, everything went really well to finish P3. I enjoyed it a lot.

This situation makes Carlos Sainz confident for the rest of the season. In 2023, Ferrari had been able to achieve some good performances in qualifying and struggle in the race. In 2024, Carlos Sainz seems confident that Ferrari will be able to fight a little better against Red Bull in the race.

« I think it’s interesting to see how they can keep the soft tire C3 alive a little longer than the others and how they manage to overheat their tires less. Maybe that’s what also makes the car less competitive in qualifying and so good in the race on a circuit like Bahrain. Now we need more races to see, but I expect Red Bull to still be better in the race.

Look at the last eight races between Charles and me, we managed to get some pole positions, a lot of front rows but then Max would massively pull away in the race and Checo was always able to overtake us.

« I hope the gap in the race won’t be as big and that we have taken a step forward in this respect. »

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