After Red Bull and Max Verstappen’s dominance came to a pause with the conclusion of the Singapore Grand Prix, the team and its drivers are laying the groundwork for a better race at the upcoming Japanese Grand Prix. \
The race at the Marina Bay track changed the pattern that had existed since the commencement of the ongoing season with the first non-Red Bull win nabbed by Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz who clinched his trophy even during the celebrations post the race.
The Scuderia team has been on fire since their home race at Monza and they are not planning to look back anytime soon. The excitement with the team and the fans does not end there. They are gearing up for the race in Japan which will be held between September 22 and September 24 with a game-changing upgrade. According to the reports from the Italian media house, Formu1a.uno, they are set to unveil a brand new floor for their SF-23 car.
POLLLEEEE!!! @CarlosSainz55 absolutely sends it around Singapore! 🚀 @Charles_Leclerc P3 💪 pic.twitter.com/9smFqiR5kx
— Scuderia Ferrari (@ScuderiaFerrari) September 16, 2023
This kind of enhancement has been diligently put together and fine-tuned in the wind tunnel during the brief gap between the Italian and Singapore Grand Prix. After this crucial upgrade, Ferrari is planning on shifting their focus towards the future. They are already working on the development of their car which will land on the tracks in the upcoming 2024 season.
Carlos Sainz has cautioned Ferrari on the unpredictable nature of the SF-23
Since his grand score at Singapore, Carlos Sainz has stolen the limelight away from teammate Charles Leclerc, who used to be the ‘better preferred’ driver at Ferrari. He nabbed the second pole position in a row in the most recent races this season.
Even though the Prancing Horse team outshined the rest of the grid, they failed to keep up with their one-lap pace as they did in the beginning. While Red Bull was experiencing an awful weekend, the Spaniard took his chance and ended their winning run.
🔴 La configuration de la Ferrari SF-23 pour Suzuka.
(📸 @AlbertFabrega) pic.twitter.com/LyL18soFFJ
— Scuderia Ferrari FRA (@FerrariF1FRA) September 21, 2023
Putting an end to Red Bull’s dominance, which was frowned upon by some of the drivers on the grid, has brought a breath of fresh air into the sport. But Ferrari’s concerns do not end there. According to Sainz, “It’s still a tricky car and we’re still trying to find the right set-up. We’ve been working hard to try and find the sweet spot and probably we still haven’t found it yet.”
The car nevertheless displays some erratic handling traits. A handful of individuals may find this unpredictability satisfying, but Carlos Sainz offered a word of caution. Their strategic errors too remain the same but there is a chance that they might be able to evade such errors in the upcoming races as well.