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Charles Leclerc's SF-24 has been fitted with the third powertrain this at Imola season, consecutively after the Miami GP. Ferrari PU Technical Director Enrico Gualtieri said that the change was nothing to be worried about.
The 26-year-old was provided with a new power unit in Miami earlier. However, there was an issue with the team's post-race checks. Because of this, Leclerc's Ferrari has been fitted with the third power unit available this season
Gualtieri said that while the change wasn't a part of their plans, it was done because of the post-race checks after the Miami GP not fitting Ferrari's standards.
"Yeah, it was not intended in terms of the fine plan," Gualtieri was quoted as saying by Motorsportweek. "But after [the] Miami race, our usual post-race checks didn’t fit completely on our standard values."
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"So nothing to be worried about at this stage. But simply we decided to minimize any kind of potential criticality over this day that is quite an important one," he added.
According to the updated regulations, a driver is free to use up to four ICE units in a season. Any number exceeding that leads to a grid penalty in the race.
Although Charles Leclerc is already on his third free power unit for the 2024 F1 season, Gualtieri said that the team would be using his old units as well since there was no critical issue with them.
"We will use the engine again over the season and being the third unit fundamentally equal to the second one is just managing the pool. So we will use it again over the next Fridays and then we’ll go on with the standard plan," Gualtieri said.
“As I was saying before, after the Miami race, our analysis didn’t fit completely with what is the usual outcome. Just for precaution, given that we cannot put the engine on the dyno to get any additional experience to confirm or not, we will reuse it in the next Fridays," he added.
High hopes for Ferrari in Italy as Charles Leclerc tops the charts on Friday's practice sessions
Ferrari entered the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix with major upgrades to the car. The front wing, rear wing, sidepod inlet, engine cover, floor edge, diffuser, and rear suspension were the parts fitted with the new upgrades.
This is one of the reasons the race is expected to be competitive for the team. While championship leaders Red Bull Racing also introduced some upgrades, Max Verstappen wasn't comfortable in the car. He commented that they were "severely off pace."
Ferrari currently sits second in the constructors' world championship. Carlos Sainz's victory at Melbourne earlier this season gave the team a major boost in points. Furthermore, Charles Leclerc has remained competitive this season. He has been within the top four in all the rounds so far, giving him a comfortable third place in the championship standings.
The first two practice sessions in Imola on Friday saw Charles Leclerc leading. Sainz was third during FP1 and sixth in FP2. The qualifying session on Saturday will give a clearer image of the teams' performances on the track.
