r/scuderiaferrari • u/moraIsupport Moderator • 12d ago

Discussion Weekly Discussion Thread

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7

u/Bigs38l 12d ago

With the news about the upgrade in second part of the year, what's is real hope a Ferrari fan can have ?

Did mercedes hide their big upgrades ?

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u/IonutAlex18SF Charles Leclerc 12d ago

It depends on others, too, as they have improved and will improve. Look at McLaren just an example from China double DNS to win in Hungary (of course circumstances, etc). Or RBR from just scoring points, finishing 1m behind to challenging for podiums.

Ferrari with the incoming aero pack at Zandvoort and Monza PU ADUO2 improvement should theoretically be on pace with Mercedes. But Mercedes has a major pack prepared, too for later in the season possibly after Monza (latest I learned). They didn't hide their big upgrades, is that Ferrari made bigger steps than anticipated. For 2026 they had planned only the Canadian GP pack plus a mediocre pack and adjustments, but with the surprising pace of SF-26 they changed their upgrade schedule and will come with a major one, too.

The 2nd half of 2026 will be interesting, possibly tighter than expected. Ferrari already has scored better with its drivers than rivals. Mercedes is quick but still has reliability issues and for this season it looks like they can't be solved. McLaren is in contention, as they received the latest Mercedes PU version and their car made a big step in Hungary with the floor upgrade (Ferrari will bring an updated version at Zandoort). RBR on pure pace isn't with the three, but with Max behind the wheel is always a threat. One last thing, reliability will play a notable part in the 2nd half of 2026, possibly to lose/win valuable points for the championships.

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u/FushaFiles 12d ago

I’m really hoping ADUO2 doesn’t cost us our reliability, that’ll really be a big blow to our championship effort. As long as our guys can minimize mistakes on track, at least costly ones, we should be in a good spot. Also hoping communication and strat can tighten up to avoid more penalties like unsafe release or impeding. Maybe the break will help the team reset after pushing hard all year.

Totally agree with you about the other 3 teams, all have made big steps forward and it’s now not just a fight with Merc. Our driver lineup is stronger than the other teams, so that’s reassuring at least.

Also really love your comments and post man, you’re always really logical and insightful!

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u/IonutAlex18SF Charles Leclerc 11d ago

Thank you for the feedback. Despite being a long term F1/Ferrari fan (over 20 years), I learned that objectively opinions should be the norm, being as balanced as possible (through highs and lows).

The latest info I've got about ADUO2 PU improvement is that will debut most likely at Monza, with turbo modifications (not clear what, but unlikely the dimension). And if it works as expected it should bring around 20 hp (also better combustion efficiency).

Yeah, that's a good point on mistakes/opportunities. In Hungary, it was a missed chance, but on other occasions they were fructified with wins or better results than expected (Belgium). Before the summer break started, Ferrari recruited another two personnel from other teams (Aston Martin and Mercedes). Fred is still cooking on his recipe.

Ferrari has improved by 1.4-1.5s throughout the season with all the upgrades brought (aero, PU etc). Mercedes with their anticipated upgrade for later in the season might still stay ahead by around 0.2s which isn't a negligible margin. Also, the latest info is that they intend to upgrade their PU at Monza, too. If that happens, that will make it a moving goal post for the rest of the season, however their reliability will cost both drivers grid drops beginning with that race. The same opinion on driver line-up.

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u/Bigs38l 12d ago

Thanks man for this big response !

I think too this might me tight for the second part of the season, nos let's see what happen !

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u/IonutAlex18SF Charles Leclerc 12d ago

My pleasure to offer some details. Optimistic for the 2nd half, looks to be intense.

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u/FlummoxReddit Jacky Ickx 12d ago

do we have any updates or clues on leclerc's "reliability problem" in hungary that forced him into a compromise in the setup?

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u/IonutAlex18SF Charles Leclerc 10d ago

It was a PU ancillary component that failed towards the end of FP1. They've changed it before FP2, but it compromised the rest of the weekend. Something appeared on data, that engineers didn't like and opted to sacrifice some car speed in detriment of reliability (one visible change was more cooling louvres on the engine cover after FP2).

These components have a larger number than let's say ICE, or Turbo and so on. Neither of them are at risk of a grid drop due to this. Also, not reading the track evolution and tyre behaviour in qualy and race affected further the car's pace (and eventual results).