No major upgrades for Ferrari
From testing it looked like Ferrari did not have the pace of Red Bull and Mercedes. Despite this they won’t be bringing major upgrades to Austria.
Ferrari performance in February was so poor that there was talk that they were concerned about Racing Point being quicker than them at the start of the season.
Reports in the off-season suggested that they’d bring major upgrades to the first race in Austria in order to prevent this happening. Said upgrades included improvements to the gearbox, front-wing and engine.
30hp more for Ferrari ? Unlikely
Italian media in particular claimed that, compared to the Melbourne-spec car, the RedBull Ring-specification 2020 Ferrari will have a slimmer nose, stiffer gearbox, new rear suspension and an engine with 30hp more.
But a team spokesman told German magazine Auto Motor und Sport: “We only have very small changes to the car.
“It was more important for us to understand the SF1000 better,” he added. “We have made a good step forward.”
The German report said the first major upgrade will hit the red car from Hungary – the third round of the initial ‘corona calendar’.
RedBull charging ahead!
Red Bull, on the other hand, will be bringing almost a different car to their home track, according to Helmut Marko.
“The car in Spielberg will not be the same as that which would have been driven in Melbourne,” he told AMuS.
“We brought the upgrade to the car that was planned for the fifth race in Barcelona and a second one now [that was planned] for Spielberg.
“Everything is based on CFD and wind tunnel. There is a certain uncertainty factor. You go to the third stage without knowing how the first and second update would have felt in practice.
“We just have to assume that the data is correct. ”
Mercedes will bring upgrades too
According to James Allison, Mercedes will also be bringing significant updates to Austria. If both there’s and Red Bull’s have the desired effect, Ferrari may well have their worst fears realised and end up having to look behind them rather than ahead.
Formula 1 in 2020
The season begins next month in Austria, but much of the schedule is still uncertain due to the coronavirus pandemic.
There will be two races in Austria, one in Hungary and then two in the UK to kick the season off.
Races in Spain, Belgium and Italy will follow but as it stands there are only eight races on the calendar.