Ferrari’s trademark start of the season: parts flew from Leclerc’s car at the very first test meters, the engine failed in the race

The podium is gone.

During the winter break, Ferrari went through big changes – Frederic Wasser took the place of Mattia Binotto and immediately took up team problems: figured out the reliability of the engine and rebuilt the strategy department (the chief strategist of the Scuderia was sent to work at the base in Maranello).

It seemed that the tests and practices went without incident, the Ferrari gradually stabilized, but then the first Grand Prix of the year crept up – and the Scuderia began it as if 2022 had not ended. Charles Leclerc had to give up his first quick run due to severe wheel lockup in the first corner.

As it turned out, the problems started even earlier – right after the starting line on the very first test meters. The car of the Monegasque decided to self-destruct – carbon fragments from the SF-23 unexpectedly flew onto the track. Qualification had to be stopped with red flags.

Charles did not have an answer to the question “what fell off the car” – Max Verstappen turned out to be better informed about the Ferrari car:

Charles: I don’t know what the detail is because I haven’t seen any images yet. Max: It was a sandbag (sandbag, in F1 sandbagging is a process when a team deliberately hides the real pace in practice and on tests – Sports.ru). Charles: For sure. But the blockage was due to the fact that I was too positive about braking in the first corner. I didn’t feel anything strange.

But SkySports F1 expert, former F1 driver and current Mercedes simulator Anthony Davidson came to a different conclusion. It was the breakdown of the car that provoked the lock – Leclerc lost part of the downforce because of it.

Davidson took a closer look at what the Ferrari pilot lost: part of the deflector on the front right wheel, which most likely damaged other elements in the lower part of the car during the flight.