poor traction, lack of rotation and inadequate downforce

April 7, 2025

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Seeing a Ferrari like this in Formulation 1 is painful. One can’t say in any other case when expectations had been fairly totally different. On this telemetry evaluation of the crimson automotive, we may also embody knowledge from Kimi Antonelli. The efficiency of the Italian will assist us perceive the present type of the Maranello-based automotive. Let’s begin by saying that Kimi Antonelli has supplied one other clear and unmistakable sign: he doesn’t drive to make an look, however to make a distinction.

The Italian rookie drove a virtually excellent race, ending in sixth place and scoring vital factors for the staff. However that’s not all: with the quickest lap within the race and 9 laps within the lead, he broke two information that belonged to a sure Max Verstappen, changing into the youngest driver to steer an F1 race and to set the quickest lap.

The efficiency was constructed on stable foundations: an extremely lengthy 30-lap stint on the medium tires, the longest on the grid, managed with disarming consistency. After Max Verstappen and Lando Norris, actually, Kimi Antonelli was the third quickest within the first a part of the race, with a median lap time of 1.33.669 and a finest lap even recorded on lap 28, displaying that the degradation on his W16 single-seater was virtually zero.

After the one pit cease of the race, the development was confirmed: the Mercedes driver was the quickest on observe within the second stint, setting the quickest lap on lap 50, earlier than ending his race simply over a second behind his teammate. Sadly, the identical can’t be mentioned for automotive quantity 44. After a stable first a part of the race, Lewis Hamilton’s assault on the sixth place stopped at lap 33, when the seven-time Formulation 1 world champion tried an undercut on the 18-year-old from Mercedes by switching to the medium tire.

Nonetheless, by the second lap of his stint, Kimi Antonelli’s onerous tire offered extra grip and efficiency, and Lewis Hamilton misplaced the usage of the DRS system. From there on, a gradual decline started: a ten.5-second hole by the tip of the Japanese Grand Prix. The second stint was merely disastrous, which is unusual contemplating the yellow tire is probably extra performant than the onerous tire, particularly within the first 15 laps.

But, as talked about, within the final 23 laps, the common delta to Kimi Antonelli was about 5 tenths per lap. To grasp what the precise limitations of the SF-25 had been within the remaining a part of the race, we determined to investigate two laps concurrently from the Italian driver and Lewis Hamilton. We’re speaking about lap quantity 46. As a premise, you will need to observe that there was a number of discuss journey heights for the reason that begin of the 2025 Formulation 1 season.

Properly, might these have affected the second half of the race on the 5.807-kilometre Suzuka Circuit? As a result of we keep in mind that because the automotive consumes gas, it naturally lightens in weight and, consequently, it rises barely from the reference aircraft, probably reaching heights that aren’t ideally suited for the right functioning of the Ferrari single-seater. That is our speculation. As for the remainder, there’s the thermal degradation that Lewis Hamilton himself confirmed through varied staff radio messages.

From the preliminary evaluation of the telemetry, it’s evident that each one of Kimi Antonelli’s benefit is within the first sector, and that is fairly curious: theoretically, that is the part of the observe the place essentially the most grip is required, which a softer tire compound can present. Solely within the snake part, specifically from corners 2 to 7, does Lewis Hamilton lose as a lot as 0.519 seconds. In each single nook of the lengthy part, the British driver has a big pace deficit.

We particularly discover this within the exit of flip 6 and within the entry into flip 7, the place the delta is even 9 kilometers per hour: all through the Suzuka weekend, the Pink automotive struggled with understeer, and this nook is evident proof of that. Even within the race, this phenomenon was current, though it appeared far more pronounced on the British driver’s automotive than on Charles Leclerc‘s, the place small enhancements in rotation had been seen.

Moreover, the shortage of grip and downforce generated on the medium Pirelli compound can also be confirmed by the total throttle and full braking knowledge: as a lot as 4.6% extra and 5.8% much less, respectively, in favor of Kimi Antonelli, indicating that the Italian was a lot faster and extra simply on the throttle for traction, and wanted to make use of the brakes much less, displaying wonderful rotation and agility.

Contemplating the British driver’s dealing with, the Spoon part, specifically corners 13-14, was the litmus take a look at for the seven-time Formulation 1 champion. Part of the observe the place it’s crucial to hold as a lot pace as potential into the nook and thru it, then attempt to get on the fuel earlier, utilizing all of the observe, and absolutely journey the exterior curb. Lewis Hamilton struggled from qualifying on Saturday, and within the race, the distinction was greater than clear.

He even loses 8 kilometers per hour on the apex, as he’s pressured to make use of the brakes far more to decelerate the automotive, switch weight to the entrance, and purpose the entrance finish on the apex of the nook. Within the exit, as soon as once more, he’s late on the throttle pedal, displaying a scarcity of traction, after which carries the drawback all through the 130R part, compromising not solely the second sector but in addition a part of the third.

The British driver had said that he sacrificed qualifying efficiency for a race-oriented setup, however the knowledge tells a unique story. Actually, it’s the precise reverse. There’s actually nonetheless a lot work to be carried out for Ferrari, and they should examine the dynamics of this SF-25 automotive fastidiously. A automotive that, in the mean time, can’t extract all its potential, mainly as a result of the setups usually are not being optimized.