Analysis

Here's what Ferrari is targeting with its F1 Austrian GP floor upgrades

Ferrari has brought a major upgrade to the Red Bull Ring this weekend

Of the top Formula 1 teams, Ferrari made the largest statement with its Austrian Grand Prix updates as it hopes to undo a mixed start to the 2025 season.

The team reported updates to the four 'defined' floor sections, although it would be easier to term this as effectively an entirely new floor for the Red Bull Ring weekend; in FP1, Lewis Hamilton's car was adorned with a series of aero rakes to gauge its effectiveness on-track and to supply a data point to determine the correlation with Ferrari's simulator tools.

Most of the changes were underneath, with modifications made to the floor fences, floor body (the central section) and the diffuser, but the revised floor edges can be seen with minor geometrical updates.

This specifically relates to the floor 'edge wing', i.e. the small flick-up situated behind the front, outer fence. It's only a small change, but the below image shows the revised shape and shorter trailing section, as displayed by the rear-most flick-up and the point at which the floor straightens up along the edge.

The overall flick runs at a reduced camber, i.e. the top edge is brought further down to change the incidence of the airflow expelled from this area of the car.

Ferrari SF-25 comparison

Photo by: Mark Sutton/Getty and Martin Wdzieczny/circuitpics.de

Ferrari's pre-event technical notes state that "this floor package features updated front floor fences targeting an enhanced vorticity released downstream. The reshaped boat and tunnel expansion have been subsequently reoptimised, together with the floor edge loading and diffuser volume distribution, leading to an overall load gain across the car operating envelope".

Ferrari tends to run its SF-25 at higher ride heights, which sacrifices peak performance but should offer a modicum of greater consistency. Running the car low means that there's more reliance on the 'ground effect', where the pressure within the underbody is reduced by the forced acceleration of airflow.

Creating a lower pressure underneath means that, in layman's terms, there's a greater pressure difference experienced versus the higher pressures experienced topside. The air will naturally try to equalise that to match the air pressure at atmospheric level but, since an F1 car is not porous, the air can't get through and thus simply creates aerodynamic loading on the car.

It's harder to do this at higher ride-heights, so aerodynamicists will have to manipulate the floor design to produce that effect at the same magnitude.

Ferrari has struggled less in the races so far in 2025, but qualifying speed is missing; on a hot lap with low fuel and fresh soft tyres, the key variables are tyre temperatures, balance, and - ultimately - top-end downforce. Those features are slightly less important on a Sunday, when races come down to a measure of consistency and tyre management. You still need downforce to perform well and minimise the effect of tyre wear and degradation but, amid the other variables, the absolute need for peak downforce is diluted.

Ferrari SF-25, technical detail

Photo by: Circuitpics.de

"I think putting the tyre in the right window is always more and more difficult," Charles Leclerc said. "Maybe on that, we are missing something but overall our car limitations are making it in a way that, when you are pushing to the absolute limit in qualifying, we struggle a bit more than when you have to do tyre management in the race - where this is our strength."

It's been seen across this generation of cars that consistent downforce levels are more important than sometimes attaining a peak - and maintaining a steady level of load across all conditions, under traction, and through various corner profiles, - can ensure that a driver can be on the pace across a race weekend's two main sessions.

And if the drivers can get that balance in qualifying too, then Ferrari might start to find stronger results will come its way simply through raising the level of its 2025 package.