The environment was charged with emotion when the chequered flag fell on the season finale in Abu Dhabi on the Yas Marina circuit, with each Ferrari and Mercedes groups experiencing a spread of emotions because the 2024 marketing campaign drew to an in depth.
Lewis Hamilton had simply secured a formidable fourth-place end in what could be his last race in a Mercedes Method 1 automotive. As he crossed the road, Martin Brundle famous Lewis Hamilton’s memorable final-lap overtake on George Russell, a becoming conclusion to their three-year partnership, with Hamilton leaving because the crew’s highest factors scorer. In the meantime, Ferrari had a triumphant last outing of the season, with each Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz securing podium finishes.
Regardless of Oscar Piastri’s early spin, McLaren clinched the Constructors’ Championship with Lando Norris’ well-deserved victory, which denied Ferrari their long-awaited first title in 16 years.
Nonetheless, Lewis Hamilton would have been buoyed by the spectacular efficiency of his future crew, Ferrari, over the ultimate months of the season.
Charles Leclerc triumphed within the Italian Grand Prix, holding off McLaren’s tempo benefit, whereas Carlos Sainz’s victory in Mexico Metropolis was arguably essentially the most dominant show of his Method 1 profession. In line with a report from Italian each day newspaper La Gazzetta dello Sport, preparations for the 2025 season are already underway at Maranello, and Ferrari might have already perfected one essential facet of subsequent yr’s automotive that Hamilton will significantly recognize.
Forward of the 2025 season, Ferrari has reportedly perfected the ground of the automotive, a function that might be essential to Hamilton’s success.
With solely minimal adjustments to the laws governing the automotive designs from 2024 to 2025, Ferrari’s focus for subsequent yr is extra on evolution than revolution. Group principal Frederic Vasseur has confirmed that fewer than one p.c of the 2025 automotive’s elements might be carried over from their 2024 challenger, signaling a refined method to creating the brand new automotive.
Fred Vasseur talked about in a current interview that the true competitiveness of the automotive would solely be revealed in Bahrain. The French supervisor acknowledged that generally the dangers taken are solely obvious after the very fact. He additional defined that the automotive could be fully new, with lower than 1 p.c of its components shared with the 2024 mannequin. He emphasised that whereas it was a distinct challenge, this method utilized to all groups.
In line with the report from Gazzetta dello Sport, Ferrari’s 2025 single-seater is anticipated to function an developed model of the experimental ground utilized by Charles Leclerc in Qatar. The outlet means that Ferrari’s engineers have efficiently refined this element, anticipating its integration right into a extra dynamic platform that might be much more seamlessly included into the crew’s newest aerodynamic idea.
Over the previous yr, it has grow to be more and more clear that attaining the appropriate stability within the automotive is essential, versus merely maximizing downforce. This understanding is significant for Ferrari as they purpose to enhance upon their present design.
If the crew can preserve the robust efficiency momentum they demonstrated on the finish of the 2024 season, there’s each purpose to consider that each Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc might be among the many high contenders for the championship in 2025.
The significance of studying from previous errors, notably with regard to mid-season updates, was clearly evident all through the 2024 season. The prolonged size of the Method 1 calendar offers groups with ample time and, crucially, a wealth of knowledge to tell their choices concerning automotive improvement.
Whereas groups like Aston Martin and Crimson Bull launched updates that in the end hindered their progress, McLaren stands out as a main instance of a crew that received it proper. Group principal Andrea Stella made the clever choice to delay the set up of McLaren’s new ground, cautious of its potential influence on the efficiency of different groups.
Ferrari, however, launched a major replace in Spain that set them again for a number of races, with many arguing that this specific package deal price them the title. To keep away from repeating such errors in 2025, Ferrari might want to guarantee they make the appropriate calls, which might give Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc a real alternative to problem McLaren and Max Verstappen’s dominance.
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