Charles Leclerc shared a positive update after the second day of pre-season testing that is likely to delight the Tifosi. The Monegasque shared his thoughts about the SF-24 after he completed 54 laps on the second day of testing in Bahrain.
Speaking about how was the handling of the SF-24, Leclerc said in a post-session interview as per Tami on X, “Everything is going as planned, in the sense that we have no bad surprises when it comes to the behavior of the car. The car behaves just as it behaved in the simulator so that is rather a good sign.”
Our morning session has been cut short due to track repairs, @Charles_Leclerc still made the most of his time on track #F1Testing pic.twitter.com/gHKkxzs5ez
— Scuderia Ferrari (@ScuderiaFerrari) February 22, 2024
As the SF-24 seems to have lived up to its expectations, Leclerc had a strong day where he led the pack before retiring prematurely in the morning session. The Ferrari star encountered a drain cover near Turn 11 that brought out an immediate red flag. As a result of the contact, debris scattered on the track and FIA called off the session.
Leclerc’s SF-24 suffered damages to its floor due to the contact. Ferrari had to shell out a whopping $126,000 in repair bills for the same. Apart from this unfortunate incident, the Prancing Horse did not have any significant issues to deal with.
Both Leclerc and Ferrari teammate Carlos Sainz appeared on day one and day two of testing unlike Red Bull and Mercedes, who had only one driver assigned for each day. The Ferrari duo had a strong outing on the second day of testing as they registered the fastest lap in both the morning (Leclerc) and the afternoon sessions (Sainz).
How has Ferrari so far performed in pre-season testing?
Two days of pre-season testing have now concluded in Bahrain. The first day saw Max Verstappen and Red Bull top the timing charts. However, it was Ferrari who came out on top on day 2. Charles Leclerc topped the time sheet in the morning session with a 1:31.750 and was ahead by five-tenths from Oscar Piastri.
Sainz then topped the afternoon session with a lap time of 1:29.921. He was ahead of Sergio Perez by seven-tenths. After the second day of testing, the Monegasque revealed the new car felt “healthier“ compared to its predecessor.
| Ferrari’s long-run pace is very encouraging.
Unlike last year, the SF-24 is producing consistent laps across race simulations.
[@formu1a__uno] pic.twitter.com/SiU6QI7DvY
— formularacers (@formularacers_) February 22, 2024
Leclerc’s remarks are pertinent to note as he often complained about how undrivable the SF-23 was last year. However, he believes the engineers at Ferrari managed to rectify these issues.
Leclerc, with the SF-23, suffered from wind sensitivity, lack of a strong aerodynamic balance, and excessive tire wear. With the 26-year-old now having given positive feedback about the SF-24, the Tifosi will hope that Ferrari can have a strong season this year.
