With Formula 1’s return to Europe, Ferrari saw an opportunity to introduce a major package of upgrades, all with the aim of bringing the team back into contention for victories.
However, after the first two free practice sessions at the Austrian Grand Prix the numbers on the timing screens are far from what they had hoped for and they certainly don’t inspire confidence at this stage.
A New floor and floor edges for Ferrari at Austrian Grand Prix
Telemetry data allows us to explore in greater detail the true impact of the new components fitted to the SF-25.
From the start of the season, Ferrari has struggled with the performance of the SF-25 – especially with issues linked to the rear of the car where some questionable technical decisions were made.
We’re nearly at the halfway point of the season and, despite previous upgrade packages, we’ve yet to see any real step forward from the Italian team.
Austria may well represent the final opportunity for Ferrari to turn their season around, particularly as this race marks the start of the European phase of the championship before the summer break.
If a team is performing well at this point of the year, it provides a clear reason to continue developing the current car; if not, it becomes far easier for management to shift their focus and resources towards developing the 2026 car, which will need to comply with an entirely new set of regulations.
In its attempt to salvage this season, Ferrari has brought upgrades to what is arguably the most critical area of the car’s performance—the floor.
Although these changes are not visible to the naked eye, close inspection reveals a few modifications at the front of the floor and at the rear of the diffuser area.
Lewis Hamilton vs Charles Leclerc: Ferrari head-to-head scores for F1 2025
???? F1 2025: Head-to-head qualifying statistics between team-mates
???? F1 2025: Head-to-head race statistics between team-mates
Unfortunately, the lap times set on track so far have given little cause for optimism.
After FP1, Lewis Hamilton finished P9 while Dino Beganovic, stepping in from Formula 2, was P18.
But it’s fair to take these results lightly given the far-from-ideal conditions on track.
Unfortunately, that does not mean Ferrari’s performance improved significantly in FP2.
Charles Leclerc managed the fifth-fastest time, but was 0.610 seconds off Lando Norris’s benchmark, while Hamilton only posted the 10th best time, trailing by almost a full second.
Such gaps are huge on a circuit as short as the Red Bull Ring.
When we compare the fastest laps of Leclerc and Norris during the session, it becomes clear where the Ferrari driver was losing time.
One key area was the first corner, where the difference in apex speed was particularly noticeable.
Leclerc lost two tenths in that one corner alone.
Interestingly, he was able to claw that time back at Turn 3 leaving them evenly matched through that sector.
However, the telemetry clearly shows a significant loss in Turn 4, where Leclerc gave away almost half a second in just one corner.
In the quick section through Turns 6 and 7, Norris was visibly more stable and able to carry higher speed.
The reasons behind such sizable differences revealed by the telemetry could be many (fuel load variations, differing power unit modes).
We simply can’t know for sure, which is why free practice data always comes with a pinch of salt.
That said, the general trend we have seen throughout the season remains: Ferrari’s race pace is strong enough to battle for podium positions, but they continue to lack the raw pace required for qualifying.
If we set Monaco aside, the best qualifying result for Ferrari this season was Leclerc’s third place in Bahrain.
On Saturdays, Ferrari has consistently fallen short and it increasingly looks as though they it is the fourth-fastest team over a single lap.
What also stood out was the visible lack of confidence in the car.
Early in FP2, Hamilton radioed that the pace just wasn’t there and he didn’t know why. Leclerc, meanwhile, had a rather odd off-track excursion.
Race Pace: Ferrari’s Brighter Spot
When it comes to race pace and the long-run simulations in FP2, things were more encouraging for the Italian squad.
Most drivers focused on medium and hard tyres, which are expected to be the main compounds for the race just as they were last year.
On the medium tyres, Leclerc’s average pace was just 0.131 seconds per lap behind Norris, who was the fastest driver in this category.
The violin plot shows that Leclerc’s lap times were actually more consistent than those of Andrea Kimi Antonelli and Norris, even though he was marginally slower.
This is a very encouraging sign, especially when you consider we don’t know fuel loads or engine modes.
Plus, on a short lap like the Red Bull Ring, traffic makes it almost impossible to run uninterrupted race simulations.
Traffic will, of course, be a critical factor in qualifying as well, as it always is on this tight circuit.
Hamilton, on the other hand, ran a shorter stint on soft tyres, and the only other top driver to do the same during FP2 was Verstappen.
Again, the gap was small – which reinforces the impression that race pace may well be Ferrari’s strongest suit at the moment.
The main takeaway from these practice sessions is that despite the new components on the SF-25, the pattern remains: Ferrari has competitive race pace, but is still off the mark in qualifying trim.
Still, it’s too early to make definitive statements.
As with any major update, it takes time to fine-tune the setup and unlock performance.
Ferrari’s ultimate success at the Red Bull Ring will depend heavily on how quickly they manage that.
Read next: F1 data analysis: The secrets behind Alex Dunne’s stunning McLaren debut