Sainz Highlights Porpoising Issue as Culprit Behind Ferrari’s Slump at Spanish Grand Prix

Carlos Sainz has disclosed that porpoising is severely impacting Ferrari, as a theory for their recent dip in form is proposed after the Barcelona qualifying session.

Carlos Sainz disclosed that the issue of porpoising, a bouncing effect, has impacted Ferrari during this weekend's F1 Spanish Grand Prix.

Bouncing, often termed as "porpoising," posed a significant challenge for most teams across the grid in the inaugural season of the new regulations in 2022.

Nonetheless, as squads have gradually grasped the regulations, the issue has diminished, until this past weekend.

Ferrari achieved the third-highest speed during the qualifying rounds, landing in the fifth and sixth positions for the starting grid.

High expectations were placed on Ferrari as the team unveiled a major update package for the current weekend.

In a conversation with a few members of the press, including Crash.net, in Barcelona, Sainz highlighted that Ferrari was facing a significant issue with the car bouncing during fast turns.

"Indeed, we've faced challenges throughout the weekend when navigating the fast corners," he explained. "The persistent issue of the car bouncing continues to make the high-speed turns particularly difficult for us."

"Likely, this could be causing some wear on the tires in the third sector; I'm not certain. It's the third year under these rules, and we're still battling with the porpoising issue during fast corners when there's side force on the vehicle. It's been a challenge throughout the weekend to eliminate it.

"Despite our efforts, it remains an issue, leading us to this circuit. Observing McLaren and Red Bull, it's apparent they exhibit no bouncing, which suggests they're performing well."

Similar to his team member Charles Leclerc, Sainz firmly believes that the recent improvements to Ferrari's car are performing as expected.

"He clarified that they are functioning as expected. "With all the improvements that have been made, we're about three and a half tenths apart. Looking back at Suzuka in Japan, we were trailing by about three and a half tenths to maybe half a second, perhaps slightly more. So, it really seems to vary depending on the circuit for everyone at the moment.

"The unmistakable entrant into the battle is Mercedes. Meanwhile, McLaren's upgrade in Miami has shifted them from being behind us to moving ahead."

"Therefore, we continue to explore and strive to discover new methods. It's likely that we'll have to uncover a key element to enhance our performance on tracks of medium to high speed, where managing the bounce and the ride quality remains crucial."

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