Ferrari: We start again from Spa-Francorchamps

Once the summer break is over, Formula 1 resumes activity this weekend on one of the most fascinating places of this sport, Spa-Francorchamps, the track that has hosted 43 of the 55 editions of the Belgian Grand Prix valid for the World Championship. There are fifteen successes for a Scuderia Ferrari driver in this race, from that of Alberto Ascari in 1952 to that of Kimi Raikkonen in 2009.

Of the current Ferrari duo, only Felipe Massa has won this Grand Prix, in 2008, while Fernando Alonso's best results are second place in 2005 and third in 2007.

After spending the break with his family in the Dolomites, the Scuderia Ferrari Team Principal returned to the office at the beginning of the week. “Everyone in Maranello seems very motivated to me: we have recharged our batteries to face the second part of the season in the best way” – he says – “We share the same approach, ready to get back on track. Our realistic goal for these eight races is to try to win as many as possible and bring home as many points as possible. I'm sure we can achieve excellent results but we should avoid looking at the standings because we are perfectly aware that winning the championship will be very difficult to achieve, given the current gap: let's see how the next races go.”

Domenicali remains confident in the team's potential: “We have everything to do well and we have to believe in it. We are close to the end of the development of the 150° Italia but this does not mean that we will no longer work on the car, even if all the energy from a design point of view will be dedicated to the 2012 car. From a regulatory point of view, next year will not there will be big changes, apart from the one relating to the position of the exhausts, so all the machines will essentially be evolutions of the current ones. Furthermore, from what I can say after seeing the model of our car in the wind tunnel and the work that the design office is doing, our car will be very innovative. After all, it is absolutely necessary that this is the case because our primary objective will be to start the year competitive at the highest levels.”

There is a driver who holds the record for successes at Spa-Francorchamps and who appears predominantly in Domenicali's memories linked to this track. “Spa is a unique circuit, both for its length and for the variability of weather conditions, which often play a decisive role in making the races very fun and uncertain” – explains the Team Principal of the Scuderia – “If I have to mention specific memories, then I think of 2004, when Michael's second place gave him his fifth world title with Ferrari, and Kimi's victory in 2009, in a particularly difficult season for us. From a more personal point of view, I can't forget 1998: Michael had returned to the pits after the accident with Coulthard and I had to chase him because he wanted to go and do the friendly assessment with DC in the Scot's garage.... Speaking of Michael, this will be a special weekend for him, who will celebrate twenty years in Formula 1: he is part of the history of the sport but also of the present. With his seven world titles, he is undoubtedly the best driver that Formula 1 has ever seen and he is in the hearts of all of us at Ferrari: I want to send him our best wishes for such a special anniversary."

It is not only the changeability of the weather conditions that makes Spa a special circuit but it is the very nature of the track, with its ups and downs and passages in the Ardennes forest: it is an old-fashioned track that pushes today's very modern single-seaters to the limit. “It is a very interesting and demanding circuit from a technical point of view” – says Luca Marmorini, Director of Engines and Electronics of the Scuderia – “The role of the engine here and in Monza, the immediately following race, is more important than in any other race of the calendar: ten horsepower can be worth at least three tenths a lap and the engine is at full capacity for long stretches, putting its reliability to the test. At Spa, aerodynamics are also important: even if you have a very powerful engine, it may not be enough to win.”

After being absent in 2010, KERS returned to the single-seaters this season: Marmorini remembers well how important this system was the only time it was used in Belgium. “In 2009 Kimi achieved a very significant victory for the Scuderia, the first for a “hybrid” car produced in Maranello” – explains Marmorini – “On a track where power is a decisive factor even the KERS has more importance. When Kimi triumphed in Belgium two years ago it was clear that the use of KERS was decisive in allowing him to successfully defend himself from Fisichella's Force India, further confirmation that this system is useful in overtaking but also in the defensive phase. I believe that this year too the KERS will make a significant contribution to the car's performance at Spa. The development program for this system is progressing: as we cannot, by regulation, increase power and energy, we can try to improve its efficiency and reduce weight.”

Another system in use this year is DRS, which allows the driver to "turn off" the rear wing to reduce aerodynamic drag and have more speed for overtaking. Its use is permitted throughout the weekend until the race, when it can only be used under certain conditions. For this weekend the rule has been changed: DRS can never be used along the Eau Rouge. In the compression that is found after the first curve the suspensions are subjected to considerable stress and, even if the safety level has been increased over the years, you always travel around 300 km/h and it is a point to be treated with the due respect: allowing pilots to reduce the load was deemed too dangerous.

In the continuous search for aerodynamic load this year, exhaust gases are increasingly playing a leading role. “The exhaust system has become very important in terms of its influence on aerodynamics: changing this element of the engine serves to help our chassis colleagues improve the overall efficiency of the car” – says Marmorini – “It is an area which we continue to work on, although we need to be sure that the efforts made do not have a negative impact on reliability. The extreme use of exhausts to have a load costs a little in terms of pure power but we engine enthusiasts know well that the engine is only part of the package: if having less power means we can contribute to making the car faster then we are happy! ” “A tough track for the engine is also tough for fuel consumption” – continues Marmorini – “Our collaboration with Shell is one of the most important areas of development as petrol and lubricants are some of the few elements connected to the engine that can be modified. We still have some developments in the pipeline for the rest of the season, which aim to improve reliability and efficiency in terms of consumption: the long partnership with Shell gives us a fundamental advantage over our rivals.”