Earlier this year, an F1 engine development freeze was implemented for certain components, while other parts are allowed upgrades until September 1st.
Formula 1 teams are empowered to improve the reliability of their power units, but there are limits to performance gains.
The F1 engine freeze was formally agreed for 2021 after Red Bull pushed hard for its introduction when Honda announced it would pull out of F1 at the end of 2021.
F1 teams will abide by the freeze, with power units remaining largely the same until the end of 2025, after which new engine regulations will apply in 2026.
Scuderia Ferrari endured a difficult 2022 season and had a number of reliability issues, including problems with Charles Leclerc losing out on victories in Spain and Azerbaijan.
Scuderia Ferrari F1 team principal Mattia Binotto said he hopes the F1 power unit will benefit from the upgrade before it is completely frozen within three weeks.
“We hope to improve the hybrid system, which will help us during the entire period when the engine is frozen,” said Mattia Binotto.
“We are working hard, but it will not be a turning point.”
Mattia Binotto can sacrifice grid penalties to stockpile engines to benefit from increased power, much like Lewis Hamilton nearly won the 2021 title while using six engines I was asked please.
“I think it’s not the strategy, it’s the result,” said Mattia Binotto.
“I think for them it was the result, it wasn’t planned.”
“It’s always good to have the best engine, not only in terms of performance, but also in terms of reliability.”
Mattia Binotto admits Scuderia Ferrari prioritized performance over engine reliability early in the season, but defended the choice despite numerous on-track problems. .
“I don’t think we pushed too hard because pushing performance is not enough, but we definitely prioritized performance over reliability,” said Mattia Binotto.
“What do you mean? We could have reached the homologation time limit. Then on the power unit side we also had a limit on the amount of time we could use on the test bench and these limits impacted our work. You have to remember that
“When there were no restrictions, we could have just done more work on the test bench, both in terms of performance and reliability, but today, with time constraints, we have a choice.”
