F1 News: Carlos Sainz Apprehensive Of Simulator Data For 2024 Ferrari Verdict

Ferrari is adopting a cautious approach with its 2024 title contender which is behaving differently in the simulator.

Carlos Sainz emphasized that he won't solely rely on simulation results to assess Ferrari's 2024 title contender, as the car behaved differently. Instead, he has opted to confirm the car's improved performance after the conclusion of pre-season testing in Bahrain early next year.

Rather confidently, the company boss had high praise for the car in 2023 before the season's inaugural race in Bahrain. But, the claims were destroyed after Sainz trailed behind race winner Max Verstappen by a gap of 48 seconds during the Grand Prix. 

However, the team's determination to get ahead did show results after the outfit solved several challenges on the SF-23 F1 car, especially in the second half of the season, leading Sainz to be the only non-Red Bull driver to win a Grand Prix this year in Singapore. But, the upgrades weren't enough to get anywhere near Red Bull's RB19 for the remainder of the season.

Speaking on the 2024 F1 car at the season finale in Abu Dhabi, Sainz told the media that he would have to wait until pre-season testing in Bahrain to conclude the car's performance. He said:

“I think we’re going to need to wait until testing. I think it’s incredibly difficult to know.

“The car in the simulator is behaving differently, for sure.

“But I think until we put the car in 100 kilos [race fuel] and used tyres, it’s going to be impossible to see how the car is actually treating the tyres, treating the pace and how our race pace is going to be affected.

“That we will only know in Bahrain [testing] when we put it on track. In the meantime, we can just focus on adding performance to that car in the wind tunnel and trying to make it better.”

Fortunately for Ferrari, Sainz revealed that the team has a better understanding of the car, and it would now be easier to maximize its potential. He added:

“We understood it and now we just put it on track and we try to maximise it every weekend. I think we are doing a much better job of that.

“It’s almost unbelievable that these swings in performance can happen. But it is the Formula 1 of nowadays.

“Now we need to focus on making sure… we understand why the car there is strong and why so weak in other types of circuits and corners.”