Ferrari is set to introduce a much-needed floor upgrade in Bahrain this weekend, aiming to address a persistent performance shortfall in their 2025 car.
Team principal Frederic Vasseur conceded that the current package is off the pace. "We're missing two to three tenths of a second in qualifying," he told Sky Italia. "In the race, it's even more. We're talking about three to four tenths."
Despite pressure to bring the new floor—believed to tackle a fundamental flaw—to Suzuka, Vasseur stood firm. "We don't have to and won't change our approach," he said. "And you'll never improve by three to four tenths in one go."
Lewis Hamilton, eager for the upgrade, highlighted a key issue with the car's setup. "At present, the ride-height needs to be set higher than we would like," the seven-time world champion explained.
"We found something that wasn't delivering the desired performance in the last three races, and I hope we can achieve better results once we get that under control. I hope we have this under control by the next race. Hopefully, when the new parts arrive, it shouldn't be there anymore. The step we need is in rear downforce."
Recent races in Melbourne, Shanghai, and Suzuka have exposed Ferrari's struggles, placing them behind McLaren, Max Verstappen's Red Bull, and both Mercedes entries. "We're fourth," Hamilton admitted. "If we get that downforce maybe we can get closer. The team is aware of it but doesn't know what causes it, but when we get the new part, it will be over."
Hamilton also acknowledged that teammate Charles Leclerc is currently outpacing him.
Yet Leclerc, who finished P4 at Suzuka, expressed frustration. "This weekend doesn't make me smile because it hurts to see that when we do everything perfectly, as happened today, we are fourth," he said.
Looking ahead to Bahrain, he added: "Bahrain next week will be very important for me because I will go there with a very clear direction that I want to take for my driving style. Now, after the first races, we can say that the starting point was not great, but this is what we can do for now."
While Ferrari hasn't officially confirmed the new floor for Bahrain, Vasseur hinted at its imminent arrival. "The first significant update will arrive soon," he said. "But before that, and raising the performance level, we also need to fix the problems we had in the last races in the balance. As soon as we have done that then it will make sense to take a step forward. We will certainly bring updates but in the end I think everyone will do the same. We're not thinking too much about the world championship right now."
