There have been some interesting developments related to Ferrari’s private testing sessions at Fiorano last week, including a late abandonment of last year’s car, as per a report by Gazzetta dello Sport.
Ferrari conducted a series of tests at their Fiorano circuit near the Maranello factory last week, which involved drivers Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc, as well as their junior driver Robert Shwartzman.
2022 sees a vast array of changes to the technical regulations, as the aerodynamic efficiency of the cars is set to be significantly reduced in a move that includes the return of the ground effect.
READ: Horner: ‘If Ferrari crush us in the first race, you can say we suffered’ from 2021 title battle
The changes also pertain to the engine, which will give the teams around 20 fewer horsepower to play with this year, but Ferrari are said to have developed a fuel blend with their partners Shell that has overcome the deficit.
A rival team is said to have requested that the FIA prevent the Italian team from using last year’s machine – the SF21 – in recent tests, as they feared Ferrari would be able to collect further data from their new power unit that other squads cannot obtain.
As a result, they had to revert to their 2018 car – the SF71H.
It has also appeared that the Scuderia poached a number of engineers from rival teams over the winter, and the figure is said to be around the 30 mark.
Aston Martin and Alpine have recently announced their appointments of new behind-the-scenes personnel but team principal Mattia Binotto, who confirmed back in December that Ferrari had signed engineers, stated that they do not traditionally announce the arrival of newly signed engineers.
They have also found that the new 18-inch tyres for this season have been maximised after the data obtained during their troublesome French Grand Prix, and the aforementioned engine is said to be running well following the development of the fuel blend together with Shell.
However, this only references the Internal Combustion Engine (ICE) and there is as yet no word – positive or otherwise – on the Motor Generator Unit (MGU).
Ferrari ended the 2021 championship third in the Constructors’ Championship, with Sainz and Leclerc finishing fifth and seventh, respectively, in the Drivers’ Standings.
The Scuderia will unveil their 2022 car on 17 February, around a week ahead of the first pre-season test in Barcelona.
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