Ferrari’s performance in Austin: the “mysterious” technical update is Loic Serra. The influence of new technical director Loic Serra at Ferrari.

For Scuderia Ferrari, the triumph in the United States Grand Prix at the 5.513-kilometre Circuit of The Americas in Austin was a somewhat unexpected victory in Formula 1, especially given the superiority displayed against the competition. Such domination had not been seen since the one-two finish at the Albert Park circuit in Australia at the start of the 2022 Formula 1 season. Indeed, the Prancing Horse is proving to have changed its approach compared to the recent past. Now, the car improves rather than regresses, as happened with the F1-75, whose development was frozen as early as July. The euphoria after the triumph on American soil is contagious, but it must be managed.

The story of this 2024 Formula 1 season has shown that it is essential to keep your feet firmly on the ground, because Ferrari’s goal is far from unattainable. We are clearly talking about the constructors’ title, which could shift from being a distant dream to a realistic outcome, provided the SF-24 demonstrates the flexibility needed to replicate the strength shown at the Texas circuit. As is often the case, it’s up to Ferrari team principal Frederic Vasseur to play the role of the fireman, able to extinguish damaging excitement and focus the team on the next challenge, namely the Mexican Grand Prix.

The second “triple header” of the season is undoubtedly grueling for all team personnel and, emotionally speaking, requires a rapid mental reset for the Formula 1 teams. In short, there is not much time to rest on laurels (which, for now, have yet to fully arrive). Ferrari’s team principal preaches concentration, as the fight in the remaining 5 rounds of the championship has come down to fractions of a second. According to the French manager, it is entirely inappropriate to get too excited, as the next stop in Mexico City will represent a completely different challenge.

The high-altitude location of the circuit dedicated to the Rodriguez brothers could shuffle the rankings, precisely because of the track’s specific characteristics, where the air is extremely thin. This factor allows cars to adopt a lot of aerodynamic load without losing downforce generated by the wings. Moreover, efficiency, for the same reason, will be a significantly less important factor, which is bad news for Red Bull and good news for Ferrari, as the SF-24 car generates more drag than the RB20 at the same level of downforce. However, dominating in Texas doesn’t mean it can be done in Mexico.

The practicality of the French engineer is clearly a strategic move. Ferrari definitely believes in the constructors’ title. For the head of Ferrari Racing Department everything is still possible, because in five races (including two sprint weekends) the total points up for grabs exceed 200. At this point in the F1 championship, there is no room for lapses in focus or technical errors, as happened after the previous three wins of the Prancing Horse. The Singapore Grand Prix is the most recent demonstration of how a weekend that could, and should, have been much more satisfying was squandered.

Returning to the United States Grand Prix, the SF-24 once again proved to be a much more competitive car during the race, thanks to perfect tire management. In this regard, it’s not surprising that Frederic Vasseur admitted that Ferrari introduced some updates even at the Texas event, despite the document titled “presentation car” being empty. It is important to highlight that the notice provided by the International Federation includes visible aerodynamic updates, including the geometry of the external suspension system.

Frederic Vasseur explicitly referred to something new under the carbon fiber body of the SF-24. In Texas, the engineers from Maranello maximized the car through optimal mechanical adjustments. A fine-tuning that allowed Ferrari to enhance performance through a perfectly balanced aero-mechanical compromise. We saw this during the race. By examining Charles Leclerc’s telemetry data, in fact, we can see that car number 16 was the most competitive Formula 1 car in every single section of the track, both with the Medium set in the first stint and the Hard tires in the second part of the triumphant drive toward Ferrari’s one-two finish at the Circuit of the Americas.

A configuration that caused the Ferrari to suffer slightly in qualifying, particularly in the first sector, especially in the section that involves rapid corners with several sharp direction changes. We are referring to the “snake” where, on a flying lap, the SF-24 showed slight instability that limited its performance in terms of mid-corner speed. However, the softened setup worked very well in the rest of the track, providing more grip at lower speeds. All of this was assisted by a highly effective mechanical setup. Speculation abounds on this point.

Many have speculated that Ferrari, referring to Frederic Vasseur’s comments about “invisible updates,” may have adjusted the internal suspension elements to gain an advantage. A benefit also aimed at extending tire life with a high fuel load during the race, where, after all, points are earned. And who knows if in these decisions the influence of new technical director Loic Serra was involved, given that much of his career has been spent focusing on the interaction between chassis and tires, bringing great success to Mercedes during its eight years of dominance in Formula 1.

The next stop in the Formula 1 championship? The weekend at the 4.304-kilometre Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez in Mexico City in just a few days. We are talking about a track where Ferrari, since the South American circuit returned to the calendar, has never won. This is despite the fact that in recent seasons, the Italian cars have secured pole position on several occasions. It’s a track where starting from pole position is often even a disadvantage due to the long high-speed section leading from the grid to turn 1. To conclude with a thought: whatever happens, in Mexico, Ferrari has the same goal: to try to win.