A secret revealed? Ferrari brought a hidden front wing upgrade to Austin | F1 Magazine – F1online.sk

Ferrari surprised the entire Austin paddock with his speed, but since he did not announce any improvement before the weekend, no one could explain what exactly was behind it. Was it a ban on flexible DRS flaps, tightening of parc fermé rules, non-functional improvements on competitors? It is possible that these factors also contributed, but an important factor was one innovation that escaped the attention of experts.

Ferrari owned the fastest car in the sprint and later also in the grand prize, and it was the only one among the top teams that did not bring anything new. Or so we thought, which only fueled speculation that the FIA ​​must have secretly clipped the wings of others.

The Scuderia presented the new parts in Singapore already, although they were originally intended for Austin. On the streets of Marina Bay, however, we only recognized the “basic” version of the front wing, it appeared on her face. of the article by three insiders Ferrari Rosario Giuliana, Giuliano Duchessa to Piergiuseppe Donadoni.

Ferrari in the US used the second improved version of this wing made of new composite materials, which are characterized by higher flexibility, but at the same time pass all static tests. Since teams are only required to announce aerodynamic improvements before the weekend, it did not appear on the list. In terms of surface and aerodynamic curves, it remained unchanged.

However, its features are definitely not the same. Due to the additional flexibility, it not only offers better aerodynamic efficiency in fast sections, but it also makes the best balance of the one-seater. The competition is certain that Mercedes and McLaren rose in the spring mainly due to the car’s front wing rotating and bending at speed, reducing the resistance and especially the decline, which brought the balance of the single-seater closer to the optimum point.

The new structure of Ferrari’s front wing may also be related to the reinforcement of the manpower of the composite materials department in Maranello, which the same source already announced this summer.

In addition, the fact that the basic version of the wing was presented in Singapore greatly helped the Italian team. This meant he could also use it at the Pirelli tire tests at Mugello and compare the two versions of the front wing directly on track; both tougher and more flexible. Insiders talk about optimization that matches “A close source of the team from Maranello” it made great progress.

“Improvements? Use your imagination,” the Ferrari boss said in his cryptic statement Frederic Vasseurwho laughed at a journalist’s question about the lack of news on the single-seater Ferrari. “You only need to account for aerodynamic improvements and those that change the shape of external components. But, we all go out, including ourselves. It is not progress, but every thousandth can make a decision, and that is why we need to improve in this direction. “

It was also mysterious Charles Leclercwhen he explained that it was worth using improvements even before the end of the season and not waiting for the next year. “Everything you’ve learned so far and all the new parts to come before the end of the season – if there are any!” – according to the direction we think is correct. This is the direction we will take in 2025.”

While the Scuderia has been helped by a new front wing, we are still waiting for the improved floor from the McLaren workshop, which has a lot of respect for its use. This is because it is the most important part of a single seater, which brings big profits, but also headaches. The power distribution can still be changed, but Ferrari is not going to sleep.

“If we see something beneficial, we’ll take it to the track. But not now, but until Qatar,” he appeared Vasseurdepending on whether the development reaches a point where it is increasingly difficult to bring in some news. “I don’t know what other people are doing and how it affects the performance and handling of the car. However, when you bring some news, you may have problems with the options, so you can’t step forward immediately as you would expect. At the moment we are talking about small improvements.”