Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc turns to extreme settings to combat persistent bouncing issues. Will this bold move pay off in Hungary?
In recent Grand Prix, Ferrari was only the fourth force on the grid.
Why this decline in pure performance? Because the upgrades introduced in Barcelona did not have the expected effects.
Indeed, they do provide, on paper, points of aerodynamic support.
However, in return, the SF-24 bounces much more. So much so that Ferrari considered discarding its upgrades.
Ultimately, new parts, at the floor level, should help limit this bouncing in Hungary this weekend.
Will these upgrades work? Isn’t it concerning to see Ferrari falling behind in the development race?
At the Hungaroring paddock, Charles Leclerc aimed to put things in perspective.
“Our rate of progress, up to Monaco, was really good.”
“As I’ve said several times before, we are probably the team that has made the most progress from last year’s Monza to this year’s Monaco, which represents a very good rate of improvement.”
“Then, we went to Montreal where we had issues with the power unit during the race, which obviously cost us a good result. And then, the turning point happened from Barcelona where we had an evolution that introduced a bit more bouncing.”
Charles Leclerc reveals the extent of the problem for his Ferrari: he had to drive with extreme settings to compensate for the bouncing… Thus, the vicious circle.
“From that point, I have been quite extreme in the changes to settings to try to find a way around these problems, which is reflected in the results.”
“However, we are gaining a lot of knowledge about these issues and I think it will help us bounce back (sic) from this weekend.”
“For us, it is obviously very important to lose as few races as possible to understand these issues, but now we understand them better. And I am confident that the situation will be better from this race onwards to maximize points here and at Spa, and of course for the rest of the season.”
On the upgrades introduced by Ferrari at the floor level this weekend in Hungary, Charles Leclerc was not very forthcoming…
“I’m not going to go into too much detail for now, you’ll obviously see tomorrow.”
“We have done our homework quite well and as I said, these last races, I adopted extreme settings on my part… and I think we have learned a lot.”
“And with the week off between races, we were able to draw conclusions and make our choice for this weekend.”
“Hungaroring is not the circuit where bouncing is most visible, but we have countermeasures.”
“Again, with the last three or four races, we have elements that could tell us whether we are on the right track or not. So, I think it will just be a matter of seeing that.”
“However, Spa will be even more of a test for us.”
“But I am convinced that what we have learned over the last three or four races will be useful in the future, whether here or at another circuit. We will make a step forward from now on.”
If all goes well, could Ferrari then aim for a victory in Hungary again?
Charles Leclerc remains cautious…
“It’s very hard to answer this question because from one weekend to the next, the top two or three teams are always within a tenth or two.”
“So, it’s very hard to be precise about our final position.”
“But yes, we will aim as high as possible and if we optimize everything, there’s no reason we shouldn’t return to the performance level we had at the start of the year.”
“That’s the goal we’ve set for ourselves. But the most important thing is to have a clean weekend, without going to extremes with the settings, just so I understand and know how the car will be when I take a corner and qualify. And if we have that, we will be capable of fighting to get back to the front.”
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Ferrari Bounce: Leclerc’s Weekend Solution? Ferrari Bounce: Leclerc’s Weekend Solution?
