Ferrari SF15-T

Ferrari SF15-T
Car Information
Manufacturer	Ferrari
Engine	Ferrari 059/4 V6T
Engine displacement	1,600 cc (98 cu in)
Height	950 mm (37 in)
Designer	Simone Resta (Chief Designer)
Formula One World Championship
Years active	2015
Constructor	Ferrari
Grands Prix	19
Wins	3 (15.79%)

The Ferrari SF15-T was a Formula One racing car designed by Ferrari that competed in the 2015 Formula One season, with its drivers being Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Räikkönen.

After Fernando Alonso departed from the team due to poor results at the end of the 2014 season, Sebastian Vettel joined the team as Alonso's replacement. Despite Räikkönen failed to finish on the podium, he was retained for another year.

The car was codenamed "Project 666" just before the unveiling of the new name. On 26 January 2015, the car's name was unveiled as SF15-T (Scuderia Ferrari 2015 Turbo). The SF15-T was launched on January 30, 2015 along with Sauber's C34.

The car would secure 3 victories throughout the season, all scored by Vettel.

Season review

After a miserable 2014 season where the Maranello-based Ferrari team failed to win any race, the team has been organised for the 2015 season. Stefano Domenicali left the team in April 2014, Marco Mattiacci was replaced by Maurizio Arrivabene as the Team Director, Nikolas Tombazis was replaced by Simone Resta as the Chief Designer and Fernando Alonso left the team and was replaced by Sebastian Vettel.

Ferrari started their 2015 season at the Australian Grand Prix. During qualifying, Sebastian Vettel qualified fourth and Räikkönen fifth on the grid, During the race, Vettel went on to finish in third in his first race for Ferrari, meanwhile Räikkönen retired from the race on lap 40 due to a botched pitstop which caused the left rear tyre to be loosened. At the next race in Malaysia, Sebastian Vettel took his first Formula One win with Scuderia Ferrari, being one of the Ferrari drivers to take a race win on their début season with the team.

In the Chinese Grand Prix, Räikkönen was frustrated by a McLaren car not giving him space under blue flags, prompting out the message "Come on, get that McLaren out of the way!". Vettel eventually finished third in the race after being under pressure from his team-mate in the closing stages.

Kimi Räikkönen finished on the podium at the next race in Bahrain for the first time since the 2013 Korean Grand Prix and also the first time since the 2009 Italian Grand Prix for Ferrari.

In the Spanish Grand Prix, Räikkönen was again frustrated by a Manor car not giving him the space to pass by under blue flags. At the Austrian Grand Prix, Räikkönen was involved in a first-lap crash with McLaren's Fernando Alonso, knocking them both out of the race.

At the Hungarian Grand Prix, both Vettel and Räikkönen qualified third and fifth respectively. In the race, Vettel got a great start coming into the first corner, and going into Turn 2, Räikkönen passed Nico Rosberg for second, giving Ferrari an one-two lead in the opening stages of the race. Räikkönen lost one of his front cameras on lap 19, opting not to change his front wing. On lap 42, Räikkönen started to suffer engine problems, and after the safety car period, Räikkönen's race was finally over, ending Ferrari's possible chances of finishing one-two without any single mechanical problem. Vettel still continued to lead the race, being under pressure from Nico Rosberg and Daniel Ricciardo during the closing stages of the race. Eventually, he won the race, taking his 41st Formula One victory and equalling Ayrton Senna's record set 22 years ago.

The Belgian Grand Prix was Ferrari's 900th Grand Prix since their first ever season in 1950. But qualifying was poor for the team, with Räikkönen failing to set a qualifying time in Q2 and Vettel only managing a ninth place. In the race, Vettel was about to finish third after being under pressure from Lotus's Romain Grosjean, but a tyre puncture on lap 42 at the Kemmel Straight ended up with an angry Vettel, upset over the tyre puncture and even swearing in a BBC interview.

The next race in Italy saw Räikkönen qualify on the front row with Vettel in third, but a near-stall start from Räikkönen saw him drop to the back of the grid. Vettel eventually finished second in the race behind Lewis Hamilton of Mercedes.

In the Singapore Grand Prix, Vettel set his first pole position with Ferrari after Mercedes struggled throughout the weekend. Vettel led throughout the race despite two safety cars were deployed. Even if Vettel started from pole and won the race, he eventually did not get a possible Grand Slam, as the fastest lap was set by Red Bull's Daniel Ricciardo on lap 52.

At the Mexican Grand Prix, Räikkönen was hit by Williams's Valtteri Bottas as an "act of revenge" by the fellow Finn, retiring from the race afterwards. Vettel had a poor start to the race, having a puncture from Daniel Ricciardo's Red Bull and had to retire on lap 50 after spinning and crashing out. This marked Ferrari's first double-retirement since the 2006 Australian Grand Prix.

Both drivers kept up their good momentum at the final two races of the season, with Vettel achieving a third place at the Brazilian Grand Prix and a fourth place Abu Dhabi Grand Prix after starting 19th, behind his team-mate Kimi Räikkönen, who finished off the season in third place.

Race Victories

No.	Event	Driver	Notes
1	Malaysian Grand Prix	Sebastian Vettel	Vettel's first win with Ferrari
2	Hungarian Grand Prix
3	Singapore Grand Prix		First pole-to-win for Vettel

Trivia

The SF15-T is featured in the racing simulation video game Assetto Corsa, along with the Ferrari F138 for the Red Pack DLC.

Complete Formula One Results

Complete Formula One Results
Year	Driver	Tyre	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19
2015
	Vettel	P	3rd	1st	3rd	5th	3rd	2nd	5th	4th	3rd	1st	12th	2nd	1st	3rd	2nd	3rd	Ret	3rd	4th
	Räikkönen		Ret	4th	4th	2nd	5th	6th	4th	Ret	8th	Ret	7th	5th	3rd	4th	8th	Ret	Ret	4th	3rd

Notes

Succession Ferrari cars Predecessor Ferrari F14 T Ferrari SF15-T Successor Ferrari SF16-H