Opinions are mixed on whether Ferrari is in real trouble despite a downbeat assessment after week one of pre-season testing.
The Scuderia opted for a low-key approach in Barcelona as they focused on learning the SF1000 and analysing whether the goals of more downforce and increased setup flexibility had been met.
While feedback on those areas has been positive, Ferrari boss Mattia Binotto then came out on Friday and declared the team was not as fast as their rivals after an engine issue had hampered Sebastian Vettel’s running on the final day.
On the face of it, the lap times would back that up with only Williams and Haas having a slower best time of the week, and comments by Italian journalist Leo Turrini hinted a big trouble at Maranello.
“Let’s put it like this: the first aerodynamic package of the SF1000 does not work,” he declared in his Quotidiani blog.
“So far the problems of 2019 have not been solved for now. The car suffers from understeer and the performance on a fast lap (even though the team did not search for such laps) are still far away from the Mercedes (and Red Bull) levels.”
Also Read:
- Ferrari seeks FIA clarification on DAS, say no copy likely before mid-season
- Vettel: New Ferrari a ‘step up’ and Mercedes’ DAS not ‘the ticket to win’
But dig a little deeper and the situation is quite a bit different.
“Why have Ferrari spent this test running their PU (power unit) consistently at much lower levels than their partner teams?” Mercedes pondered in a post-test analysis issued to the media.
Indeed, Motorsport noted how the top speeds on the main straight showed that Ferrari was 7-9mph slower than Alfa Romeo (192mph vs. 199-201mph) on the first two days before Vettel suddenly jumped to 204mph just minutes before his engine stopped on Friday.
It was also discovered by The Race‘s Mark Hughes that during a run which matched Mercedes and Red Bull in terms of length, as likely the first stint of a Grand Prix, Ferrari was also very competitive.
Although while their rivals went on to complete a full race distance, Ferrari did not.
In addition, the performance of the SF1000 in slow-speed corners was found to be almost four-tenths faster than Mercedes based on data published by Formula1.com.
Of course, all of that is still subject to other factors such as how much the other teams have left to unleash, but there are signs that while Ferrari may not be quickest, the gap is still close.
“What we can say is that we predict the battle in Melbourne at the front is going to be tight,’ Mercedes added in their assessment.
“We can also see that the midfield has closed on the front and that there is some considerable midfield swing compared to last year’s competitive order.”