Charles Leclerc is cautiously optimistic about Ferrari’s SF-24 baseline, but he describes mid-season progression as essential.
Traditionally, Ferrari’s pace relative to their rivals tends to decline during a season. Immediate rivals Mercedes and Red Bull traditionally make better improvements with their upgrade programmes.
However, this trend began to change last year – which was Fred Vasseur’s first campaign at the helm in Maranello.
The Italian outfit began 2023 in a disappointing fashion – in terms of both pace and reliability.
A retirement for Charles Leclerc and an uninspiring P4 for Sainz in Bahrain cemented their failure over winter.
The SF-23 was lacking in all areas, but was especially prone to severe tyre degradation and unpredictability in certain conditions.
Faced with this unreliable baseline, Fred Vasseur and Enrico Cardile’s technical team were forced to make significant changes.
An ambitious mid-season overhaul was the consequence of this. Generally speaking, these adjustments were successful.
Ferrari was the second-best team after the 2023 summer break, often the biggest irritant to the relentless Verstappen-Red Bull combination.
Although Carlos Sainz claimed a fantastic victory in Singapore, Leclerc’s Vegas performance was arguably a better indication of the team’s progress.
In somewhat shocking fashion, the Monegasque managed to look after his tyres and compete with Verstappen across a race distance.
This development, whilst not accompanied by a race win, spoke to Ferrari’s progress in this department.
Looking at the first iteration of the SF-24, these more desirable characteristics have been carried over and improved.
Leclerc sets key targets
Speaking to the media, the 26-year-old outlined his baseline objectives for 2024:
“To be challenging for many more wins, definitely that would be a step forward, and that would be a positive season.
“I think we need to continue on the positive momentum of the second part of last year…
“This is exactly how we need to approach this season, to continue that way, with clear vision.
“And significant steps forward every time we put something inside the car, which was the case in the second half of last season.”
The term ‘baseline’ is becoming increasingly common in F1 circles, and this is no different for Ferrari.
Fred Vasseur’s team, unlike last season, has a platform they can build upon and trust for the long term.
For Sainz and Leclerc, this should give them a realistic chance to compete with Red Bull throughout the 2024 campaign.
However, as is often the case in Formula 1, situations can evolve very quickly as rounds progress.
