Ferrari introduces floor tweaks for Bahrain F1 test

Appearing on the F1-75 at the Sakhir circuit, there are a couple of interesting new parts to help with performance and help quell the ill effects of the porpoising that everyone suffered with during the first test.

Ferrari F1-75 side pod

Photo by: Giorgio Piola

The F1-75 now features a strake that pokes its head out above the leading edge of the underfloor tunnel entrance (white arrow). This will help to tidy up the airflow's passage over the floor as it passes by the chassis.

It's unclear if this was a scheduled update, a general corrective measure from its findings from the first test, or it's something that the team has developed quickly to find performance, having studied its rivals' designs.

After all, we know how agile the team can be in this respect, with the double splitter solution that adorns its car an idea that was developed between the launch of the Aston Martin, where it was spotted on the AMR22 and the reveal of its own 2022 challenger.

Ferrari F1-75 floor detail

Photo by: Giorgio Piola

Meanwhile, a new solution could be found at the rear of the F1-75, as the team made modifications to the edge of the floor once more.

It made some alterations in this respect during the first test, with a small cut-out and tongue-like extension made in the edge of the floor just ahead of the rear tyre.

As an expansion upon this, and based on what we've seen from other teams during the first test, the team has added an 'edge wing' which is detached from the main body of the floor and held to it by a series of metal support brackets that are also angled to infer some local flow direction.

The team has also added a metal support stay to help prevent the floor from clipping the ground under load and further assist with the ill effects of porpoising.

This is something all teams will introduce as part of a move by the FIA to address the difficulties teams have faced.