Monday February 7th, 2000

Ferrari launched their 46th Grand Prix challenger at their factory at Maranello today, and firmly stated their intention to follow up their Constructors' title in 1999 by winning both World Championships in 2000.

The new car is called the F1-2000, a similar designation to that used in the early nineties when the type of car and year were combined. While technical director Ross Brawn admits its ancestry, he is also emphatic about its aims. "As always, we have tried to achieve the logical objectives," said Brawn at the launch. "Those are: more aerodynamic efficiency, lower centre of gravity, improved vehicle dynamics, better integration of the engine. In my opinion, we have made more progress with this car than ever before with a new Ferrari during my period here."

Chief designer Rory Byrne was equally encouraging. "It is the first car to be conceived entirely in our new wind tunnel," he said. "I think the main improvement in performance comes from the aerodynamics. In this area, we have made the biggest step forward since I joined Ferrari."

While stating that the car is evolutionary rather than revolutionary, every part of the car has been revised, and quite a lot is of new design. The transmission, incorporating a seven speed gearbox, is all new and includes new materials and processes. Its lubrication system has been revised to save weight and improve efficiency.

Both front and rear suspension have been revised, with new systems incorporated and for the first time, all the main componen is in the suspension are made of carbon composite The fuel system has been completely redesigned, which Ferrari hope will have a significant advantage during race refuelling stops. Furthermore, the electronics are also new.

A lot of work has been concentrated on the integration of the 049 V10 engine in the chassis, lowering its centre of gravity and laying out the ancillary components. The block is new, and has been produced using microfusion technology.

The F1-2000 is the last major contender for the 2000 World Championship to be launched, and Brawn pointed out that this late launch date was intentional. "Last year, our only weakness was a lack of performance at the first few races. Taking that into consideration, we made the decision to extend the development of this car, to ensure that we are more competitive at the first race. This gives less available time for testing, but we have chosen to move the balance in this direction."

The F1-2000 is expected to undertake most of its testing at Ferrari's own test tracks, Fiorano and Mugello over the next three weeks prior to being sent to Melbourne for the first Grand Prix of the year at Melbourne on March 12.