The Maranello-based team recovered from a terrible 2020 campaign that slipped to sixth in the Constructors’ Championship to beat McLaren to third in 2021 after years of fighting.
Ahead of the upcoming rewrite of the rules for 2022, Ferrari hopes that the opportunity presented by the dawn of the new era can give it the chance to get back on the road to victory.
From Maranello, team boss Mattia Binotto said that new processes – including being open to adopting different ideas – have led Ferrari to push the envelope with its new challenger.
The car will hit the market in mid-February just before the start of testing in Barcelona.
“When I look at the 2022 car and the 2022 powerplant, believe me, there is a lot of innovation in there,” he said.
“I think the entire engineering team has certainly been more open than before to the new design, project and regulations for 2022, which were a huge discontinuity.
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“I can measure it myself by looking at the car myself, how it is developing, and certainly by the amount of innovation we have put into it.”
Carlos Sainz Jr., Ferrari SF90 Mule
Photo by: Zak Mauger / Motorsport Images
When asked by Autosport what kind of innovation to expect, Binotto said the focus was on the internal combustion engine as well as less visible components of the chassis.
“The unit differs significantly from the current one, with the exception of the hybrid,” he said.
“We introduced it for the hybrid in 2021 because we expected the rules from 2022.
“There will be some changes to the hybrid system for 2022, initially for the regulations, as more sensors from the FIA are needed in all systems for better police work. But the overall system is very similar to what we have and what we rode at the end of the season.
“But the rest, especially with the internal combustion engine, I have to say, is clearly different. We have a new fuel, namely 10 percent ethanol, which somehow has changed the way it burns a lot.
“We’re all losing more or less 20 hp, which means that the combustion itself is somehow different. So there were many possibilities in the development of the unit and we changed it quite a bit. “
Regarding the chassis, Binotto added, “I think we were really open-minded about the exercise.
“And when you look at the vehicle concept, what was possible or not, it’s not just the outer shapes, but everything you could have done under the body, the layout, the chassis design in relation to the overall architecture, including the good the unit and its architecture.
“I think the team has produced significant innovations and the overall design that we are finalizing now is very different from the 2021 project.”
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