The SF-24 has arrived! Check out Charles Leclerc & Carlos Sainz’s new ride for 2024.
The Ferrari SF-24 was launched today in Italy. It is the 70th car the company has built to take part in the Formula 1 World Championship ahead of the busiest season ever, with no fewer than 24 races, gets underway next week in Bahrain with the only pre-season three-day test session, followed by the first grand prix at the same venue, on Saturday March 2.
The SF-24 is the third car of the new Formula 1 ground effect generation, but it breaks with the tradition of the past two years, starting with the look of it. The design group, led by Enrico Cardile, aimed to give Charles and Carlos a car that is easy to drive and that reacts predictably, with as a starting point, the positive feeling the drivers had in the cockpit over the final few races of last season. The goal is to allow them to make the most of the power unit’s potential, combined with their undoubted skill behind the wheel.
At first glance, the car is aesthetically very different to its predecessors and this also goes for the livery. Following a positive reception in Las Vegas last November, white makes its return together with yellow – always Ferrari’s second color –, an evident link with Modena but also a nod to the Maranello marque’s other main racing activity apart from Formula 1, namely the World Endurance Championship. As was the case last year, the SF-24 and the WEC 499P share the same shade of red, again this year with a matt finish on the Formula 1 car. It’s not the first time that a Ferrari Formula 1 car has featured yellow, although the yellow longitudinal stripes have not been seen since 1968, while this year, for the very first time, it’s paired with white. There is therefore less black on the car than in previous years, now restricted to the floor, the bargeboards, part of the halo and other small areas. The wheels are red with a double white and yellow stripe, these colors also featuring on the race numbers – 16 and 55 – which continue to use the Maranello marque’s official font, Ferrari Sans, this time in italics.
“I like the look of the car a lot, including the white and yellow parts on the bodywork," said driver Charles LeClerc. “But of course, what really interests me is how it will perform on track, as that’s all that matters. The SF-24 ought to be less sensitive and easier to drive and for us drivers that’s what you need in order to do well. I expect the car to be a step forward in several areas and from the impression I formed in the simulator I think we’re where we want to be. This season the aim is to be front runners all the time and I want to give our fans plenty to cheer about, by dedicating race wins to them."
Carlos Sainz, team driver of the #55, added; “When I saw the SF-24 for the first time, I couldn’t wait to jump in and fire it up. Now, I’m looking forward to driving it on track to see if it correlates with the feeling I had from the simulator, which is that it’s the step forward we all want. The aim is to have a car that’s more driveable and therefore able to run at a consistent race pace, as these are the basic requirements to fight for wins. We drivers have done our very best to give the engineers precise feedback and I’m sure the workforce in Maranello will have listened to our needs. We want to give the fans something to cheer about, as they were so supportive last year, even when things weren’t going our way."
Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz will remain as team mates for a fourth successive season in 2024, though the build up to the new campaign has been dominated by the news that Lewis Hamilton will be joining Ferrari next year.
Indeed, Hamilton has decided to end his long-standing partnership with Mercedes in favour of a move to Maranello, and it is Sainz who will be forced to make way for the seven-time world champion, with Leclerc having recently signed a new deal.
For now, the focus will be on the 24-race season ahead and taking another step forward with the SF-24 package after Ferrari claimed the only non-Red Bull victory of 2023 in Frederic Vasseur’s first term as team boss.