Throughout the first free follow periods for the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, Ferrari arrived on the 6.174-kilometre Jeddah Corniche Circuit with an excellent preliminary setup, an indication of fantastic simulator preparation. As beforehand anticipated, the steadiness was barely shifted ahead to supply extra front-end grip, each as a result of quick corners require a powerful entrance on entry and since, at first of this 2025 Components 1 season, the drivers have often complained about understeer.
Within the first free follow session, the Maranello crew centered on optimizing stiffness, as two limitations emerged in high-speed sections. The primary is route adjustments, the place the SF-25 single-seater remains to be not as agile as desired. Automobiles just like the McLaren MCL39 or the Crimson Bull RB21 deal with lateral load transfers otherwise. They’re extra reactive, which issues loads in Jeddah. After changes, the Italian side discovered a window through which to make the automotive work.
Charles Leclerc’s route is working, the ground too, however fine-tuning stays tough. For the second free follow session, the Ferrari technicians and engineers barely revised the aerodynamic steadiness. The Monegasque driver, on his first run with the comfortable tyres, skilled extreme rear-end instability, which didn’t give him a lot confidence on nook entry and mid-corner. The 27-year-old driver then requested a “minus 4,” which means the entrance wing angle was diminished by 4 clicks, an operation which was verified through on-board footage. This shifts the middle of strain and helps stabilize the rear.
From a dealing with perspective, it’s higher to have some understeer slightly than oversteer on entry. That is why Charles Leclerc discovered one thing helpful with this setup. It must be famous that the SF-25, with this configuration, nonetheless lacks rotation in comparison with the McLaren, though the brand new flooring appears to be working higher in Saudi Arabia than it did in Bahrain.
It stays to be seen how a lot of a step ahead this truly is — a verdict that may solely come within the qualifying session and the race. Ferrari crew principal Frederic Vasseur and Charles Leclerc, in any case, had differing opinions final weekend in Bahrain. Basically, although they appear to have discovered an excellent setup right this moment, with which the SF-25 seems to be working, the automotive stays troublesome to fine-tune. It’s because the steadiness between entrance and rear could be very delicate.
The transition between understeer and oversteer is extraordinarily slim. That’s what deputy crew principal Jerome D’Ambrosio was referring to when he stated the working window was exhausting to search out. Bottoming stays a problem, and right this moment we might want to see in the event that they’ve been in a position to decrease the SF-25 to the design ride top. In Bahrain, only a few millimetres had been lacking — however these make a distinction on the stopwatch by way of ride top.
In Flip 1 they’re shedding loads, but it surely must be a problem that may be addressed with some advantageous tuning. For now, telemetry permits us to estimate the best hole round two-tenths slightly than the 4 to 5 tenths seen on Friday. A niche that would shrink additional with improved setup. One other vital issue to remember is the rear wings. In the present day we are going to see which model the Ferrari engineers select.
The 2 drivers introduced two totally different rear wing configurations to the monitor, particularly relating to the trailing fringe of the second flap. A minimal variation, however one that would provide a small straight-line velocity benefit by lowering drag and bettering the effectivity ratio. When it comes to high velocity, Crimson Bull leads with 332 kilometers per hour. Ferrari reaches 328 kilometers per hour, thus a deficit of 4 kilometers per hour.
In the meanwhile, McLaren seems to be the slowest of the three contenders, trailing by 7 kilometers per hour. The Woking automotive, nonetheless, stays the one to beat with the perfect total bundle. It has a really robust entrance finish, with a lot of grip, utilizing this as the muse to construct the setup and stabilize the rear. No mid-corner instability and really clear laps. The distinction in comparison with Ferrari is made on entry and in route adjustments.
Yesterday morning Crimson Bull had understeer. They modified the setup to hunt rotation and higher steadiness the downforce from the ground. The RB21 remains to be extra advanced to handle than the Ferrari, although in Jeddah they appear to have discovered the correct working level. In comparison with the MCL39 it loses floor on nook entry, however regains an excellent chunk of that on exit resulting from robust traction.
Additionally they achieve on each straight. They’re not the quickest within the velocity lure, however have considerably optimized their high velocity, a parameter that will likely be essential within the race. Temperatures stay excessive, with 31 levels celsius air and 39 levels celsius monitor temperature, however since there are nearly no low-speed traction factors, the rear performs effectively thermally. The monitor isn’t rear-limited, so the RB21’s challenge is much less obvious.
— see video above —
Purchase official Ferrari F1 merchandise!
Let different Scuderia Followers learn about us
