Although the differences between Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc were minimal at the end of the Saudi GP race, there were big disparities in how the two cars performed on different sections of the circuit.
With Ferrari going for a higher downforce setup than Red Bull, the Maranello team was better in acceleration and in low and medium speed corners, while the Austrians, with much less downforce on their car, were far superior in top speed.
That was the key to Verstappen having a chance to overtake Leclerc after pulling within distance of DRS just a few laps from the end of the race.
Ferrari team principal Mattia Binotto realized his team and Red Bull had gone for different downforce solutions after Friday practice.
The energy drink team took some of the downforce off their car, while Ferrari opted to keep a high level of downforce as they believed this would help better manage tire degradation, which was also critical in the Grand Prix. Bahrain Award.
However, the hard tire showed virtually no signs of degradation in Saudi Arabia and the gains that Ferrari should have made for a clear top speed disadvantage did not materialize.
These were the words of Mattia Binotto on the matter: “Max [Verstappen] was with a slightly higher downforce level on Friday, but then they lowered it.”
“We decided to keep a higher level of downforce because we thought it was important for tire degradation. But in the end the degradation was very small.”
“I think the choice that they made, in a way, deserves an analysis from us. But, in general, any choice is a compromise. It is only a matter of details and being able to fit the right pieces that in the end decides the race”.
Verstappen didn’t think Red Bull would be any more competitive in Saudi Arabia than it had been in Bahrain, as he thought the race would go in favor of the team with better tire management.
“It’s hard to say if it’s a step forward. But I think we’re always learning and of course every circuit is also different in terms of what you need in the car, so there’s still a lot to see.”
On the hard tyre, Verstappen felt more comfortable being able to push to the limit without having to take care of it.
“I didn’t really feel too good with the medium. All the time when you were getting close to the car in front, the tires were giving out. So there wasn’t much you could do.
“It was a bit frustrating to wait until the right lap to pit and be able to switch to the other tyres, because as soon as we switched to hard I had a much better feeling.
Red Bull boss Christian Horner said it was clear his team and Ferrari had gone for different approaches in the first two races, and now needed to think better about how to deal with this for the next round in Australia.
“It’s been interesting to watch these first two races. I think we made the decision here to go lower downforce, and that worked.
“Melbourne will be a very different challenge. The layout has changed, it’s also a faster circuit now. So it will be just as fascinating.”
