Following an online reveal on Friday, the SF16-H follows in the footsteps of the triple-race winning SF15-T, with Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen once again behind the wheel in 2016.
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“We had a fantastic year last year – obviously my first season with the team – and we all want more”, said Vettel, the four-time world champion.
Ferrari have not won a driver’s title since Finland’s Kimi Raikkonen, who is still with the team, won in 2007.
“I hope we have done enough but we will only kow for sure when we start racing it. I can tell you with absolute confidence that the love and care and effort and skill gone into this vehicle is beyond question”.
Underneath the bodywork, Ferrari’s self-made power unit is understood to have been substantially revised to minimise space, resulting in a noticeably narrower rear end to the vehicle.
Ferrari finished second to Mercedes in the constructors’ standings last season, with Vettel winning three races on his way to third in the drivers’ competition. “It looks lovely”, he said. We would like to fight until the end for the championship.
Team principal Maurizio Arrivabene added: “Normally I don’t set the objective, it is my boss”.
The SF16-H, as the new single-seater will be called, sports a different livery, as speculated in the past weeks, with white paint appearing on the engine cover, the front wing and in front of the cockpit. “It won’t be easy because our competitors haven’t been sleeping, but we are committed to do our best”.
Jock Clear has joined the team from Mercedes after spending 2015 on gardening leave as head of track operations, enabling James Allison to focus more on development work at Maranello.
Assessing Ferrari’s challenge for the year ahead, Allison said: “Back in 2013, Ferrari was not at the right level, the championship, except for maybe doing pitstops”. “We are very confident that we can achieve good results this season”.
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The drivers will get their chance to test the cars on Monday in Jerez.
