Ferrari’s 2023 F1 car set to be a second faster than 2022 car – Reports

Despite the predicted time loss of about half a second due to the regulation changes to reduce porpoising, Ferrari's 2023 car is apparently over a second faster in the simulator than its predecessor.

Ferrari’s 2023 F1 car set to be a second faster than 2022 car – Reports

New Ferrari boss Frederic Vasseur

Ferrari started 2022 on relatively equal terms with Red Bull but were out developed. In the second half of the season, they never had a genuine shot – their misery reportedly being compounded by the porpoising technical directive, and because they had to turn down their engine to avoid another mechanical failure. Even so, it’s fair to say their performance in the first half of the season did not meet expectations – or live up to the car’s potential.

Coming into 2023, the expectations are high once again. Given Red Bull’s 10% wind tunnel time reduction, Ferrari have been given a small boost for the development battle. Plus, considering their ‘handicaps’ in the second half of 2022, it’s fair to say they had some performance in hand. The engine problems shown last season are gone; according to SoyMotor, they’ve unlocked about 30hp more performance. That means the performance limit will be higher, not that it’ll suddenly be 30hp more powerful.

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According to a report by formu1a.uno, the ‘numbers’ from the Ferrari simulator are certainly positive, and according to their highly qualified sources, the Ferrari ‘675’ as it’s currently called, is over a second faster than the 2022 F1-75. This is certainly a delightful prospect for the fans, especially because the regulation changes (regarding porpoising) were predicted to make the cars lose around half a second of lap time by FIA single-seater director, Nikolas Tombazis.

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Read More: “Can he cope with the mental trauma?” – Fans put pressure on Fred Vasseur as he starts his first day as Ferrari’s Team Principal

Understeer decrease a boost for Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc

Charles Leclerc
Charles Leclerc making an overtake on Max Verstappen during the Austrian Grand Prix

There are a lot of things going on at Ferrari right now. Frederic Vasseur joined up on the 9th, and according to the report, is not looking to make large-scale changes. Apart from this, the work on the car continues. The biggest issue that the Italians need to solve is the engine’s unreliability (which was on full display last season). Then the focus will shift to other things, like tire degradation and aerodynamic efficiency, etc.

Moreover, the understeer is also expected to decrease due to the changes made by Pirelli and is expected to impact the front tires, but also decrease tire wear along with that. The decrease in understeer is a particularly good sign for Charles Leclerc – who, as we all know, prefers a more oversteering car. But again, so does Max Verstappen. This may mean that we will be finally treated to the title battle between them that was promised in 2022 but didn’t particularly deliver.

But apart from the car’s issues, there are also organizational and team-side problems to solve for Ferrari. Last season, strategic errors cost their drivers many points. 2023 is expected to be tight once again, and the Italians cannot afford to slip up again.

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