Despite starting the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix weekend on a terrible note, Max Verstappen somehow found a way to win the race despite facing immense pressure from McLaren’s Lando Norris. Meanwhile, Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc also finished just less than seven seconds behind the Dutchman in P3. After watching the race closely, Dr. Helmut Marko recently shared his thoughts about the upgrades Red Bull’s rivals brought to Imola and explained why it could be a tight season for his side.
While Ferrari‘s Qualifying wasn’t optimal, they made amends in the race to secure a strong finish. Leclerc earned 15 points for a P3 finish, while Carlos Sainz was able to add 10 points to his team’s tally by finishing P5. As such, Ferrari is now only 56 points behind Red Bull in the Constructors’ Championship.
Helmut Marko expects McLaren to be competitive:
“… thank God we have time to make changes (for the race)”
“We could keep Ferrari at bay with this set-up, but I think McLaren is our main competitor. And if Norris has a free lap, we have to improve. That’s clear.”… pic.twitter.com/nmPQ5QOSQ7
— RBR Daily (@RBR_Daily) May 4, 2024
Meanwhile, McLaren once again proved to be the closest competitor of Red Bull following the race in Miami. Having won the last GP, Lando Norris put Verstappen under constant pressure throughout the race, finishing only 0.7 seconds behind the Red Bull driver.
Marko believes McLaren has come close to his team in Technical developments and has “presented the better package in terms of race setup.” Taking all of the information in, Marko concluded, “It will be tight for us [Red Bull] in the coming races.”
He then added a lot of things will be dependent on the track layout. As per Marko, various routes and differences will sometimes suit one team more than the other. With Marko already concerned about the progress made by their rivals, the fact that Ferrari is bringing upgrades to their car in Monaco would only add to his and Red Bulls’ worries.
Ferrari ready for the ultimate push with a series of upgrades starting from Monaco
With nothing but resurgence and championship win in mind, Ferrari is readying for the final charge to offset Red Bull‘s reign as Constructors’ Champions. Thus far, the Ferrari cars have relied heavily on their rear wings and have enjoyed consistently improving results.
To further the same, Ferrari will bring a new high-load rear wing and DRS device for the race in Monaco. Additionally, Formu1a.uno reports that the Ferrari aerodynamicists are deliberating a second delivery package for the SF-24 2.0 as well.
I Ferrari to bring more upgrades for the SF-24 to Monaco and Silverstone!
Unlike what McLaren, Aston, Mercedes and partly Red Bull, Ferrari’s plan is to bring the upgrades in stages, the next upgrade package will be in Silverstone! #f1 #MonacoGP pic.twitter.com/zOz4J3WybV
— FORMULA ROOM (@formularoom) May 21, 2024
The second upgrade could be available for use in Silverstone, which will likely further boost the car’s performance. Under Fred Vasseur, Ferrari waited for seven races before bringing their first upgrade of the season.
The move will change their development trajectory and signifies that the team is pushing for stability in the aerodynamic department. Thus, with the second upgrade in Silverstone, Ferrari hopes to eliminate their existing problems, while the Monaco GP upgrade will reinforce its strengths.
