With the F1 paddock descending on the Red Bull Ring for the 2025 Austrian Grand Prix, Ferrari have rolled out their most substantial technical update of the season: a heavily reworked floor for the SF-25. The update is not just a mid-season tweak—it represents a calculated, bold attempt by the Scuderia to arrest their slide behind rivals McLaren and Red Bull, and to reopen the narrow operating window that has limited their qualifying and race-day potential.
What’s Changed: The Floor Redesign in Detail
Ferrari’s new floor package isn’t a surface-level change. It’s a ground-up aerodynamic revision, designed to enhance downforce generation and airflow consistency.
Here’s a breakdown of the core areas updated:
1. Front Floor Fences
These were reshaped to optimize vortex generation at the leading edge of the floor. Stronger vortices help channel high-energy air more effectively along the underfloor, improving ground effect and airflow stability. This change also aims to better manage turbulent wake from the front wheels—crucial in Austria’s combination of medium-speed turns and high-speed braking zones.
2. Central Floor Body (Tunnel Geometry)
Ferrari deepened and reshaped the underfloor tunnels (commonly referred to as the ‘boat’ section). This allows for better suction and pressure differential across the floor, enhancing downforce without requiring extreme ride heights or stiff suspension setups—problems that have previously compromised Ferrari’s comfort window.
3. Floor Edge Wing
The floor edge wing has been reprofiled with reduced camber and increased length. This creates a smoother boundary layer between the high-pressure floor and the external airflow. It also helps mitigate flow separation that has plagued Ferrari in yaw-sensitive sections of circuits like Miami and Barcelona.
4. Diffuser Redesign
Ferrari reworked the diffuser’s volume and flow path to better exploit pressure gradients at the rear. This change supports both rear grip and mid-corner stability—critical in the uphill and downhill transitions at Spielberg.
Collectively, this new floor aims to broaden Ferrari’s effective aerodynamic window—that is, how well the car performs across various ride heights, yaw angles, and cornering speeds.
Why Ferrari Needed This Now
Ferrari started 2025 with a strong foundation—Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton have both fought near the front—but over recent races, the SF-25’s limitations have shown up under pressure.
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One-lap pace has dropped relative to McLaren and Mercedes.
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The car’s aero balance is highly sensitive, particularly in wind-affected or bumpy conditions.
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Strategy windows have shrunk as tyre degradation patterns fluctuate across stints.
The floor update addresses all three issues. By increasing peak downforce and smoothing out airflow, Ferrari hopes to regain lost qualifying pace while retaining their race-day tyre advantage.
Leclerc acknowledged the need:
“In qualifying we are probably missing something… in the race, we seem to manage better than most, but we need to put ourselves higher on the grid to take advantage of that.”
Why Austria Is the Perfect Test Ground
The Red Bull Ring offers a balanced aerodynamic challenge: three DRS zones and fast straights require low drag, while corners like Turn 3 and the final double-lefts demand strong rear stability and low-speed rotation.
This makes Spielberg ideal for validating an underfloor package:
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The short lap time (~65 seconds) exaggerates performance deltas from aero gains.
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Bumps and elevation changes challenge ride consistency—testing how well Ferrari’s revised floor maintains grip through the full suspension travel.
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With the Sprint format in play, Ferrari also gets two real-world opportunities to evaluate performance across qualifying and race trim.
The Strategic Implications
Ferrari’s floor is not just an upgrade—it’s a litmus test for their 2025 development direction and a setup foundation for Silverstone, Hungary, and Monza. According to sources within the team, if this floor meets simulation expectations, it will form the backbone of Ferrari’s final in-season aerodynamic package before attention turns to the 2026 car built for the incoming regulation cycle.
In other words: this update needs to work.
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If it delivers: Ferrari can lock down a solid P2 or even push McLaren in the Constructors’ standings.
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If it fails: They’ll be forced to revert or compromise remaining upgrades—effectively conceding to a rear-guard role behind Red Bull, McLaren, and Mercedes.
What About the Drivers?
Charles Leclerc, currently 5th in the championship, has been outspoken about the car’s finicky balance and struggles in qualifying. Austria gives him the chance to see if this new floor can let him fight at the front consistently again.
Lewis Hamilton, meanwhile, has adapted impressively in his first season at Ferrari. He’s praised the team’s work ethic, but admits the car’s instability mid-corner has been tough to tame:
“We know what this car can do. We just need the consistency underneath us to really race the others on equal terms.”
If this update helps stabilize turn-in and exit grip, both drivers may finally be able to extract Ferrari’s full potential across a full weekend—not just in race conditions.
A Look at the Competition
Ferrari aren’t the only team with upgrades in Austria. Red Bull and McLaren have also introduced floor or rear-wing updates, though Ferrari’s is the most holistic package change. The team’s goal is to close the 0.2–0.4 second gap seen in Canada and Spain and reposition themselves in the tight fight for P2 in the constructors’.
Final Word
Ferrari’s floor upgrade at the Austrian Grand Prix marks a critical moment in their 2025 campaign. It’s not just a hardware update—it’s a philosophical statement that they’re still swinging for the top, not settling for P3.
With a championship title likely out of reach, this floor upgrade could redefine their final ten races. Will it unlock the consistency they’ve lacked? Will it restore Leclerc and Hamilton’s confidence? Or will it expose deeper flaws in the SF-25’s design path?
Either way, Austria holds the answers. And Ferrari knows that in F1, the floor is either your foundation—or your downfall.
