Ferrari’s New Floor Modification to Tackle Bouncing at Hungarian GP
Ferrari is set to unveil a modified version of its latest floor at the Hungarian Grand Prix, aiming to resolve the high-speed bouncing issues that have affected the team in recent races.The Italian outfit has faced challenges since introducing an updated floor at the Spanish GP as part of a major upgrade package.
While the new design delivered the anticipated downforce gains, it also reintroduced high-speed bouncing, undermining the drivers’ confidence and impacting their performance.
Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz particularly felt the effects, losing valuable time compared to their rivals.At the recent British GP, after consecutive practice tests, Ferrari decided to revert to its previous floor design, which had debuted at the Emilia-Romagna GP. The team used the time after Silverstone to thoroughly analyze the situation and determine whether to continue with the new floor or revert to the older version.
Following an extensive analysis at the factory, team principal Fred Vasseur confirmed that the new floor does provide a performance benefit and is worth pursuing. “The break before Hungary allowed us to take an in-depth look at all the data from the last three races,” Vasseur explained. “We found that our latest upgrade package did indeed bring the expected benefits in terms of aerodynamic points.
However, it also had side effects that made the car more difficult to drive.”To address these issues, Ferrari has worked hard to develop an evolved version of the floor, which will debut in Budapest.
Vasseur expressed confidence in the updated design: “We believe this evolution will provide the drivers with a car that allows them to perform at their best. This season, we are fighting for hundredths of a second, and Charles and Carlos need to have confidence in the car to achieve the best possible results in both the race and qualifying.”The optimism surrounding the new floor is encouraging news for Leclerc and Sainz, who were concerned about facing prolonged difficulties if the issues were not resolved.
Sainz, in particular, highlighted the potential long-term impact if Ferrari had to stick with the old design. “We basically have the same car as in Imola, and since Imola, everyone has updated, probably adding two tenths to the car, and we had to revert,” Sainz commented during the British GP.
“We have lost two or three months of performance gains in the wind tunnel or performance we could have added in those three months, so clearly we haven’t made the right decisions recently.”
With the new version of the floor ready to be introduced at the Hungarian GP, Ferrari hopes that the updates will restore driver confidence and competitiveness, allowing them to become front-runners once again in the races.
