F1 | Scuderia Ferrari will give Vettel a new chassis
Head of Scuderia Ferrari chassis engineering, Simone Resta, says Vettel's SF1000 will get a new chassis ahead of the Spanish GP.
Sebastian Vettel is racing in his final season with Scuderia Ferrari and currently sits thirteenth in the F1 Drivers’ World Championship. This is far from the storybook ending may people had in mind for the 4-time F1 Drivers’ World Champion. However, maybe there is finally reason for optimism that the much-loved German racer can turn his season around following the news today that Vettel will have a new chassis for the Spanish Grand Prix this weekend at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya. So, what has prompted such a decision?
Already this season we have heard Sebastian Vettel making strategic calls and we have also heard his disappointment with his team. Most recently this past weekend at Silverstone, when following a pitstop at the historic 70th Anniversary of Formula One Grand Prix, Vettel’s now infamous team radio was shared with the world:
“This is the gap that we didn’t like, we spoke about it this morning. I’ll hang in there, but you know you’ve messed up.”
Such a declaration was a far cry from Sebastian Vettel’s ‘Forza Ferrari’ from days gone by and many saw this as an indication of Vettel making clear to the racing world that his position does not reflect his ability and certain things are out of his control.
One factor out of his control is the actual car he is driving, the SF1000, and after Sunday’s race Scuderia Ferrari team principal Mattia Binotto was quoted as saying that the team was considering a chassis change for Vettel.
Today, the head of chassis engineering, Simone Resta, spoke to the motorsport media making clear this is the case ahead of the Spanish Grand Prix:
“Sebastian will have a new chassis, because after the Silverstone post-race analysis, we spotted a small fault caused by a heavy impact over a kerb…It would not have had much of an effect on performance, but it was the logical decision to take.”
“We arrive in Barcelona knowing this will not be an easy weekend for us, given how testing went here in February…However, over the five races run so far, we have worked hard to try and improve our car’s performance and extract all its potential.”
“We will obviously encounter much hotter weather with track temperatures expected to be well above 40°C. It will be an important factor, especially when it comes to the behaviour of the tyres, as we saw at the last two races in Silverstone.”
Sebastian Vettel arrives at Barcelona in thirteenth position in the F1 Driver’s Championship, and unsurprisingly says he’s curious to see what the difference will be when he sits into a pristine SF1000, having told the media:
“This circuit [Catalunya] is quite different to Silverstone and I am curious to find out how the car will feel here. We can expect very high temperatures and so it will be important to find a set-up that allows you to have good speed without causing excessive tyre wear.”
“When you get to the Barcelona track you already know it will be a race where it’s the small details that make the difference. The teams and drivers all know this track very well and that’s why, right from the start of Friday free practice, you can work on fine tuning the car.”
Meanwhile, over at f1.com, Hall of Fame journalist David Tremayne has recently made a comparison between Charles Leclerc's 4th place finish last weekend at Silverstone and many past triumphs of Gilles Villeneuve saying that:
“Just partway through his third season as a Grand Prix driver he [Leclerc] is not only proving that he is his own man, but is beginning to look very much like the finished product already.”
Thankfully, for Sebastian Vettel and his adoring fans, there is still time for Vettel to come out on top in the battle of teammates seeing how Formula One races are coming thick and fast. Such a condensed calendar means we do not have to wait long to see just how much of an impact Vettel can have with a brand new SF1000 chassis beneath him.
Speaking in a promotional video on Scuderia Ferrari’s Instagram page, Sebastian Vettel told Ferrari fans:
“It’s all about details since we know the track really, really well…It’s very difficult to make a difference both as a driver but also from a setup point of view.”
When considering what difference Sebastian Vettel can make in a race, here are some important details to recall when thinking of him, and the phrase ‘a Seb spin’ as coined by Daniel Ricciardo should not be one of them.
When referring to the German racer and former Ferrari talisman, one should recall a driver with 53 Grand Prix victories, 4 F1 Drivers’ World Championships (and three as runner up) and over 240 starts at the pinnacle of motorsport.
In conclusion, Sebastian Vettel should never be underestimated nor under appreciated. So, over to you Seb, show the racing world what you can do and start your season in Spain this weekend. You have a brand new fresh SF1000 chassis to do it in and a whole army of fans behind you.
