The Ferrari innovation that aims to transform its F1 season

Ferrari has endured a difficult start to the current F1 season, scoring just one podium finish across the opening six races.

It has arrived at its home race in Imola with an aerodynamic development that effectively complements the one introduced in Bahrain, with some wing adjustments specific to the Italian track.

It is not a large package, as another will follow later this month in Spain as the FIA introduce stricter flexibility tests for the front wing.

But as the Italian squad looks to make gains towards the head of the field, the team has not solely focused on aerodynamics. Last time out in Miami, it was clear that a very significant weakness was traction exiting slow corners, and above all, its speed through slow and medium-speed corners.

In essence, the car's setup to manage the rear of the car worsened the understeer. The root of these problems was the rear suspension, with difficulties arising from its integration with the switch to the front pull rod suspension this year.

The engineers in Maranello have studied modifications to the rear suspension, specifically the inclination of the upper arms and the pull tie rod, without undergoing an overhaul of the gearbox casing.

The changes, which are planned for the Austrian Grand Prix, will not require a remake of the gearbox, as Ferrari can modify the pick-up points of the suspension elements through the use of special inserts.

These are innovations that should change the dynamic response of the rear axle as it tries as much as possible to replicate the McLaren suspension, albeit based on a completely different scheme.

At the rear, McLaren adopts a push rod suspension while on the SF-25, it is a pull rod. But the damping advantage of the MCL39 rear suspension can be replicated as Ferrari looks to make a crucial step forward.