Ferrari Sneaks into 2024 Formula 1 Title Fight Amid McLaren-Red Bull Battle
As the Formula 1 season enters its final stretch, Ferrari has quietly and impressively worked its way into the 2024 title fight, making it a three-horse race alongside McLaren and Red Bull. How did the Scuderia notch up its game? And can it pull off the championship?
Ferrari’s Resurgence
In 2024, Ferrari showed significant improvement, combining solid one-lap performance with enhanced long-run pace, which was a key weakness last year. However, its title aspirations seemed to dwindle during the middle of the season, as McLaren made a huge leap forward while Ferrari faced a string of subpar results. Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz both retired in Canada, and a floor upgrade in Barcelona led Ferrari down the wrong development path, compromising its progress.
As Red Bull encountered difficulties, Ferrari had a golden opportunity to capitalize but seemed to have lost ground to McLaren. Fast-forward three months, and Ferrari has impressively close the gap, overtaking Red Bull and now trailing McLaren by just 29 points. So, what sparked Ferrari’s resurgence?
“We looked at the championship and said: ‘Okay, we have to do a better job in the next two or three weekends’.”
- Fred Vasseur, Ferrari Team Boss
The Italian team’s last significant upgrade package came at the Italian Grand Prix in September, featuring a revised floor solution to combat the high-speed corner bouncing issue that plagued its Barcelona updates. This upgrade has started to bear fruit, with Ferrari hitting a run of circuits that suited its SF-24 and didn’t punish its relative weakness in high-speed corners compared to McLaren.
Crucial Set-up Improvements
Senior performance engineer Jock Clear explained that their set-up improvements, particularly since the summer break, have been crucial to their progress. “We’ve really got a grip of what direction to go in, both on the development and on the set-up,” he said.
Title Fight Opportunity
The ongoing drivers’ title fight between Verstappen and Norris has handed Ferrari a golden opportunity, as Verstappen struggles to hold off Norris in a trickier Red Bull to set up and drive. The controversy surrounding their Austria collision, followed by further incidents in Austin and Mexico, has added to Ferrari’s advantage.
As Vasseur humorously put it, “As long as you are all focused on Max and Lando, this is perfect for us.”
Looking ahead, Ferrari’s title bid seems realistic, especially with its strong performances in Monza and Baku. Although Qatar might be a weakness for the team, Vasseur believes that everything is still open. With four races remaining, including the Las Vegas Grand Prix, Ferrari is quietly confident of pulling off the championship.
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