Ferrari arrives in Monte Carlo after the first official outing of the SF-24 2.0 in Imola for further confirmation of the upgrade package. The winding and atypical city track of the principality will not be as convincing as the next stages in Canada and Barcelona for extracting further potential from the aerodynamic shape change that has renewed the look of the 2024 red.
In Imola we did not see all the possible potential of the SF-24 2.0, to definitively evaluate its full potential: “Imola is not the optimal track for judging updates, Munich won’t be either.” – statements from the Monaco driver Charles Leclerc who arrives in Monaco to dispel a series of taboos in his home race.
In terms of data, the updates worked, but it is clear that we need to better understand the installation and set-up as the updated red car takes to the track. The second package that will arrive at Silverstone, barring any advance information, will be more aimed at mitigating the red’s weak points.
Ferrari SF-24 with a different rear wing after seven races: Here is the high load rear wing
Monaco is the most atypical and unique track historically within the F1 calendar. Qualifying will be more important than ever, the Achilles’ heel of Ferrari twenty-twenty-four, in contrast to the twenty-twenty-three. As we highlighted in an article a few days ago, the specification debuts on the Monaco red maximum load rear wing.
Comparison between the Imola rear wing and the Monaco high-load rear wing
The specific, completely new, follows the solutions integrated in the 2.0 package with a design already seen in the previous two years. The wing matches the endplate ears cut to high load robe. The mainplane is horizontal with an increased rope, together with a new DRS profile. It is the first truly different specification regarding the load level that we will be able to appreciate on the SF-24 after 7 seasonal events. At Suzuka a high load specification was declared (justified as a configuration to be used in case of rain) but in fact it was always kept in the Maranello team’s back garage. From the information we have we can state that the Munich wing is a completely new specification for the 2024 season, different from the one declared and not seen in Japan.
On the SF-24 the rear load was almost entirely moved by changing the configuration beam wing, much more than was done in 2023. In Monaco, from the shots we took from the Ferrari garage, an SF-24 has been seen which combines the high load wing with a new beam wing in designless gull-wing as has usually been seen in the seven previous Grands Prix.
Comparison between the Imola beam wing and the new configuration for Monaco
In Monaco 90% of the final result is decided on Saturday, and it will be important to have a red 2.0 that is, I doubt, the necessary driver-confident. In slow corners the RB20 is the best but has shown that it has difficulty digesting bumps. McLaren has improved this aspect a lot after Miami but still has a gap to close at low speeds. Ferrari is strong in the lead but in Monaco it will be important to have a perfect red in qualifying and which gives the right driver-confidence to the drivers.
