Ferrari have revealed the name of their latest Formula 1 car which they hope can power them to success this season.
While some teams prefer to stick to a system when it comes to naming their chassis, Ferrari have generally followed a less predictable approach. Mercedes and Red Bull will race with the W14 and RB19 respectively this year, both a number higher than their 2022 machines.
But Ferrari have rarely opted for such simplicity. Last year's car was known as the F1-75, while their 2021 effort had the designation SF21. The year before they raced the SF1000, which came after the SF90. Others have been even more random, such as the 150° Italia they competed with in 2011.
Rather than designating their 2023 car the F1-76, the Scuderia have again switched up their naming system. The team has now confirmed that the chassis which will be fielded in the F1 world championship this year will carry the moniker SF-23.
Fans will get their first look at the livery of the car on February 14th, at the team's season launch event. It is then likely to hit the Fiorano track for a filming day and shakedown before the actual aero design is debuted at pre-season testing.
New team boss Frederic Vasseur will hope it is as competitive as the car they fielded in the 2022 championship. The car's performance was far from the reason why their title charge fell apart, leading to the departure of former team principal Mattia Binotto.
The car was competitive with Red Bull's RB18. Ferrari's problems were mostly down to some engine reliability issues, and a swathe of in-race tactical blunders which led to the team throwing away a significant total of points.
Vasseur has faith in the team's strategy department, but has warned he will not hesitate to make changes if the same problems persist this year. "It would be arrogant from my side to take action on the technical organisation after two weeks," he told reporters.
"We have discussions to try to understand how we could improve the system, what could be the weakness of the system and to try to do a better job. I trust the guys in place. I will try to do the best for them also, and to put them in the best condition to do the job. Then it will be time, after a couple of weeks or months, to take action if it's not working."
