At Ferrari in Austria we need to replicate another weekend like the one in Canada where, despite a difficult qualifying amidst complex weather conditions and traffic, the most encouraging result arrived on Sunday, in terms of race pace. Both Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc moved up the ranks, finishing in fourth and fifth place, one step away from the podium. The team was able to fight for positions especially in strategy which needs a series of conditions to be effective. Carlos Sainz was particularly open on this point during the press conference. The Spaniard also spoke about the new updates that will be introduced in Austria.
Confidence in updates
Certainly one of the most recurring words at Ferrari in recent months, if not years, is: trust. The team underwent a real revolution at the end of 2022, finding itself having to manage a single-seater designed by figures no longer present in Maranello. The disappointing results of the first races caused the mood of the group to plummet as they were called upon to do a great job of recovery. From Canada, however, confidence seems to have returned as well as the performance of the SF-23 which at the beginning the pilots struggled to define as drivable. The SF-23 mainly lacks consistency and one of the problems that afflicts it the most is the issue of tire management. A significant factor, which had repercussions on the entire weekend, as Carlos Sainz also says.
"I think there was a good push for the whole team in Canada, especially if we look at the race pace: after a couple of difficult races in which we had difficulty finding pace, finally in Montreal it seemed like we had a good pace. We managed to recover positions instead of going backwards, and this also makes a difference in the perception of things. The perception and the pace were therefore different, and this is good news and a nice injection of confidence for the team. Tire management was also linked to the race weekend, on a circuit with low degradation which helped us. But this shows that when you have a good car and can manage the tyres, strategies also become simpler. This is what we are working on to make sure we focus on race pace and have a car like the one we had in Canada more often, because it will help us recover positions in the race, make the strategy more flexible and have more fun.".
Feelings for Austria
Carlos Sainz could have achieved a nice Ferrari podium in Austria last year. The Maranello team took home the victory with Charles Leclerc but was unable to fully celebrate. In fact, given the altitude, the Austrian circuit particularly puts the Power Units to the test. Carlos' car caught fire in the final stages, forcing the Spanish driver into a dangerous maneuver to stop the car and a heavy zero. However, expectations for this weekend when sprinting returns are high. The team will have to evaluate the additional ones updates which in particular concern the front wing and the bottom to make the SF-23 more constant.
"With the updates we expect another step in the right direction, is our goal“Sainz said. “The team is working incredibly hard and he proved it by bringing these updates in time for the race: I can only thank the people who worked to ensure that these parts arrived here already. Was a huge commitment from everyone and I want to congratulate them. We will do our best to make these updates go well and be as competitive as possible this weekend".
Source statements: FormulaPassion
