Charles Leclerc Confident Ferrari Has Made Genuine Progress with 2024 Formula 1 Car Updates

Charles Leclerc believes that Ferrari has genuinely improved their 2024 Formula 1 car with recent updates, despite the troublesome bouncing issue that has masked the progress. The Monegasque driver explained that the new floor introduced at the Spanish Grand Prix, which altered the aerodynamic properties, has actually exacerbated the bouncing issue in the SF-24. This phenomenon has been most pronounced in high-speed corners, causing unpredictability.

To mitigate this problem, Ferrari reverted to the Imola-spec floor for the British Grand Prix and subsequently introduced a revised underbody for Hungary and Belgium. Leclerc acknowledged that although the aero upgrades have produced the expected numbers, the bouncing issues have obscured the improvements in the team’s performances.

“From Spain onwards, I think this was more the turning point where we brought something on the car, which the numbers, as I’ve always said, were there,” Leclerc stated in an exclusive interview with Autosport. “However, it induced quite a lot of bouncing that we’ve been struggling with.”

Leclerc attributed his aggressive approach to set-up in the last four races to finding solutions for the bouncing issue. He emphasized that having a car that bounces makes it difficult to push to the limit, as it becomes unpredictable. This has forced him to maintain a larger margin, which is not his typical approach.

The Ferrari driver drew parallels with their progress last season, where they prioritized development over results, leading to a breakthrough with a new floor at Zandvoort. This breakthrough propelled them to a successful second half of the season. Leclerc is confident that the current experimentation phase will yield similar dividends in the long run.

“I remember last year we had two races like that, and it started in Zandvoort where we decided, okay, maybe Zandvoort is not going to be the race for us, but we want to learn as much as possible in order to get better after that,” he recalled. “I’m sure that this is the same process we have gone through in the last three-four races. However, the negative point about it is that we’ve lost three, four races instead of two last year.”

Leclerc remains optimistic, believing that Ferrari has gained a deeper understanding of the issues and has learned a lot from the recent experiments. He is confident that the team will make progress, despite losing a few races in the process.

Formula 1 news fans will be keeping a close eye on Ferrari’s progress, as they navigate the challenges of the 2024 season. With Leclerc’s confidence in the team’s updates and their ability to learn from their struggles, it will be exciting to see how they fare in the remainder of the season.

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