Ferrari desires to play its world championship playing cards till the tip: though it’s 21 factors behind McLaren within the Constructors’ Championship, the staff continues to be within the working for the title and can attempt to exploit all of the potential of the SF-24 in pursuit of a staff championship that has eluded Maranello since 2008.
The Abu Dhabi circuit has traditionally not been favorable for Ferrari, however the Yas Marina monitor appears much less penalizing for the Scuderia in comparison with Qatar, the place the climate was colder than anticipated. Within the United Arab Emirates capital, there will likely be no surprises: climate forecasts predict an air temperature of 28°C, returning to the everyday circumstances of the Persian Gulf. Theoretically, the 2 contenders will have the ability to compete for the title on equal phrases, and McLaren, with its benefit, can handle the race, presumably enjoying defensively towards Ferrari.
Fred Vasseur has stored the staff beneath strain to reach on the closing race with the championship nonetheless open: in Abu Dhabi, we are going to see an attacking Ferrari. With nothing to lose, the Scuderia will push the SF-24 to its limits.
A really low setup was examined within the simulator, because the Yas Marina monitor floor is nearly billiard-like. Nobody from Ferrari has spoken about it clearly, however the technical directive unexpectedly launched in Las Vegas affected Ferrari not solely by requiring changes to the ground, including unplanned prices to the funds cap, but it surely additionally had an influence on efficiency.
How a lot? How little? It’s clearly exhausting to say, however when 4 groups are battling for pole place with only a few thousandths of a second between them, it’s clear that each element could make an enormous distinction.
On the Abu Dhabi monitor, we are going to see an SF-24 as little as potential, and Carlos Sainz must also be satisfied to make use of the brand new flooring that Charles Leclerc examined and accredited in Lusail. The Monegasque by no means had doubts concerning the validity of the brand new resolution, whereas the Spaniard rejected it with out hesitation in FP1 in Las Vegas after which was not tempted to make use of it final weekend, regardless that there have been obtainable elements.
From the debriefing of Sunday’s race, it emerged that Carlos Sainz’s flooring wouldn’t have been considerably broken by the left entrance tire puncture, though the Spaniard couldn’t discover the tempo to assault Pierre Gasly‘s fifth place with the Alpine. Rumors coming from Maranello additionally affirm that the evaluation of the punctured tire confirmed there have been no particles from the rearview mirror misplaced by Alexander Albon’s Williams and crushed by Valtteri Bottas‘s Sauber.
The tire was basically completed: beneath the tread, the development was seen, indicating that the tire had exceeded its sturdiness restrict, ready for the race director to name within the security automotive to take away the carbon particles. Plainly this concern affected each Carlos Sainz and Lewis Hamilton, who skilled tire degradation on the identical lap.
Ferrari is able to “push” the facility unit as nicely, understanding that McLaren, utilizing a buyer Mercedes engine, could have fewer alternatives to push their energy unit nearer to its reliability restrict. It was mentioned that Charles Leclerc would have misplaced a few tenths because of the fatigue of the unit 4 put in within the Netherlands, however this was not confirmed, because the Monegasque delivered a flawless race to complete second behind Max Verstappen. In Abu Dhabi, even the facility unit, together with the hybrid system, will likely be pushed to its most efficiency.
Briefly, anticipate Ferrari to present it their all till the tip, maybe hoping McLaren will make one other mistake. The MCL38 has underperformed relative to its precise potential: if Landdo Norris and Oscar Piastri don’t make errors, it will likely be nearly unimaginable for Ferrari to overturn a prediction that closely favors the Woking staff. Nonetheless, the 2 drivers of Andrea Stella have accustomed us to errors which have value the staff dearly, so Ferrari will depart no stone unturned.
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