Ferrari testing more F1 car developments at Austrian GP
Can Ferrari get full Paul Ricard update package working for Austrian GP? Vettel insists team "fired up" to get on terms with Mercedes
Wednesday 26 June 2019 12:01, UK
Ferrari will make a fresh attempt to get their full package of car upgrades to work at the Austrian GP as they bid to close the gap to runaway title leaders Mercedes.
Sebastian Vettel suggested the team had "failed" to achieve their main goal of making "significant" inroads into their rivals' advantage last weekend in France, where they finished third and fifth, after not racing all of their latest development parts.
But Ferrari will now use the same sessions at the Red Bull Ring from Friday to run further "test items" to try and help get the best out of the package.
"We are happy to be getting back on track so quickly, because it's the best way to put ourselves to the test again to try and understand the elements that did not go according to plan in France," said team boss Mattia Binotto.
"We have various test items to evaluate, mainly in order to give us a clearer picture as to why some of the updates we brought to Le Castellet did not work as expected."
Speaking on Sunday night after finishing third and fifth in France, Binotto explained what had got to plan and what had not.
"We brought some upgrades, some of them worked well, others not. We removed the floor from the car after Friday's practices," he said.
"So we have got some homework to do in that respect, but it's showing we have some margin to improve the car. So at least the direction we are starting to set is the right one but still much to do."
And Binotto confirmed that, having struggled badly for grip in corners so far this season, Ferrari are ready to compromise some of the SF90's standout straight-line speed traits.
"We are looking for, eventually, more downforce to the determinant of the speed," he confirmed. "The car will not be too efficient but giving more downforce to get the tyres working, that will be the direction to go."
Vettel: Ferrari 'fired up'
Having already fallen 76 points behind Lewis Hamilton - the equivalent of three race wins - after just eight races, Vettel's hopes of delivering Ferrari their first Drivers' Championship in a dozen years already look remote for 2019.
Nonetheless, Vettel told Sky Sports F1 after finishing fifth at Paul Ricard: "Everybody is fired up even more.
"We have to understand why some of the bits we brought didn't work and hopefully by next week we have some answers to try something again. Maybe the track layout in Austria comes a little bit our way as well."
The whole Austrian GP weekend is live only on Sky Sports F1. Sunday's race begins at 2.10pm with build-up from 12.30pm. Find out more about Formula 1 on Sky Sports
