Ferrari's show of strength in Austin: 0.3s faster than everyone by stabilizing temperatures
Today at 01:08 PM
Scuderia Ferrari pulled off a historic one-two finish in the 2024 Formula 1 United States Grand Prix. Achieving such a feat in F1 is never easy, especially during a season where the car's optimal working range is lost. However, the Maranello team never gave up, and after a period of struggle, both the team's pace and mentality shifted. In the last four races, Ferrari has been fighting for victories, a notable achievement. Although the season is coming to an end, there are still five races left, with many points up for grabs, and the Constructors' Championship remains a target.
Austin was a crucial weekend for Ferrari. First, they needed to validate a package that had worked well on a few incomplete tracks. We can now say that the Texas test was passed with flying colors, and in just a few days in Mexico, the desire to confirm this newfound competitiveness will still be there. Now, let's look back at the race which was held at the 5.513-kilometre Circuit of The Americas in Austin. For the start, all the front runners chose to use the medium tires. This compound was well understood, having been used for the 19 laps of Saturday's Sprint Race.
All Formula 1 teams had studied the yellow tire perfectly and knew its degradation profile and how it would evolve over multiple laps. The front tires were heavily stressed at several points on the track, so after about 15 laps, they would enter a difficult phase where grip significantly decreased. The Austin track is front-limited. On paper, the fastest strategy involved starting on the mediums, switching to the hards, and possibly returning to the yellow compound for the final part of the race. However, as we will see, there was less degradation than expected.
In the early laps, Charles Leclerc showed excellent pace on the yellow Pirelli tires, especially right after the Safety Car caused by Lewis Hamilton's retirement. Following the double yellow flag, the Ferrari driver steadily built a safety margin over Max Verstappen. In just six laps, the Monegasque opened up a five-second gap to the RB20 of the world champion. With this gap maintained, the team informed him they were happy to go with Plan A, while Charles Leclerc replied that he preferred Plan B or C.
We don't know exactly what these plans refer to, but we think the first option was to extend the stint without worrying too much about Red Bull. On the other hand, Plan B or C might have referred to an earlier pit stop to defend against a potential undercut from Max Verstappen. It's worth noting that Carlos Sainz, in third, stayed close to the rear of the Red Bull, indicating he had better pace. Ferrari had the opportunity to “use” the Spanish driver in order to attack Max Verstappen with an undercut. Overall, in terms of tire management, the team was very pleased.
Over the team radio, Ferrari race engineer Bryan Bozzi reminded Charles Leclerc to avoid minor brake lockups. After the end of the safety car period, Max Verstappen was informed that Charles Leclerc hadn't done any tire management in the first sector. Moreover, Ferrari's pit wall asked the Monegasque to avoid the curbs in turns 3 and 4. Overall, the SF-24 was able to stabilize tire temperatures optimally, especially at the front. This was the opposite of Red Bull, which by lap 20 had overheated tires and was losing grip.
The Austrian car was unable to stabilize temperatures, leading to more inconsistency with the front end. From the pit box, Max Verstappen was told they might slightly adjust the angle of the front wing to reduce understeer, but that it wouldn't make a significant difference in the next stint. The Dutchman complained that his front left tire was completely gone. However, he didn't pit immediately, preferring to shorten his next stint on the hard tires. Around lap 20, Carlos Sainz was asked about the condition of his tires. The Spaniard replied, “Phase 3,” meaning the tires were already degrading.
As a result, he pitted on lap 22 to switch to the white-banded Pirellis. Carlos Sainz was the first of the top five drivers to stop and re-entered the track just ahead of Sergio Perez in sixth place. On lap 26, Max Verstappen also pitted, losing position to the Spanish driver. The next lap, Charles Leclerc also pitted and switched to the white-banded tires. Meanwhile, McLaren was complaining about a lack of rotation, indicating they hadn't been able to fully address the excessive front-end tire degradation they experienced during the Sprint.
The Woking-based F1 team tried to manage their tires as much as possible, aiming to extend the useful life of the rubber. They implemented a slow start in the first part of the stint, which seemed to pay off. However, they still lost 13 seconds of race time compared to Charles Leclerc. The strategy was to have a large tire delta in the second part of the race, meaning fresher tires for the next stint.
On the hard tires, the handling of the Italian car remained very good. The warm-up phase for the tires was fairly smooth. Since Charles Leclerc wasn't under pressure after leaving the pits, he had the time to do a "slow introduction," which helped stabilize the tire temperatures throughout the stint. After the stop, McLaren was fairly confident they could catch Max Verstappen, who had a margin of about 5-6 seconds. The key for them was to reach that point with their tires in good condition.
The Dutchman had delayed his pit stop a bit, losing valuable time, but also reducing the tire difference in the second stint. Red Bull worked hard to stabilize the surface temperatures of the tires and make them more consistent. In terms of overall race pace, Red Bull was slightly behind McLaren. Overall, both teams were about 0.3 seconds per lap slower than Ferrari, which was significant. Ferrari showed considerable strength this weekend.
Let's take a step back and understand what happened. The Texas circuit is complex for various reasons, as we explained throughout the week. There are several bumps along the track, especially in the first sector. Additionally, the circuit features various types of corners, requiring a difficult compromise in suspension and aerodynamic setup. Last year, Ferrari adapted well in Texas, knowing the potential was there. The team found a good development path, with the floor now working at its best.
The stability of the floor also leads to more consistent tire performance throughout the stint. Over time, the Maranello engineers have learned how to make the most of the updates from the Italian Grand Prix and the Singapore Grand Prix with the car's setup. In the race, Ferrari optimized performance across all three sectors, especially in the middle sector and S3. Charles Leclerc also posted the fastest time in the first sector, with Max Verstappen closer. The SF-24 was able to highlight the car's characteristics throughout the lap, achieving excellent balance from high to low speed.
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