Talking at a press conference in Madonna di Campiglio, Ferrari's annual get together with the media, test driver had talked about the difference between the 2004 and 2005 cars, and the fact that the cars are now faster in a straightline.
"For a month we have been testing with this car in 2005 configuration and just after the summer break, we started actively to test some solutions and now we're totally using the 2005 version," the Italian revealed.
"We were testing that in November and December," he continued. "Once all the components come together, with the final tyres and the final aerodynamics of the new car, I'm sure that the performance is going to be inferior in comparison to last year.
"I don't think this performance is going to be much slower," he admitted, "but if you want to put it into times, I think it will be about a second and a half slower, so cars are going to be 1.5s, maybe 2.0s at the most slower, as against last year.
"Not much will be necessary to adjust to this new solution," he continued. "The cars haven't changed that much, also because when a car is well balanced, in reality, you don't feel much that you have less downforce. The car is lighter, of course, it is a bit more critical to drive in some corners but overall, as far as driving is concerned, not much is going to change.
"What is going to change is the strategy for the race," he admitted, "because of course Grands Prix have to be tackled with just one set of tyres, so that means the strategy is going to be different as against what we've seen in the past, but apart from that, I don't see any major difference."
Other than aerodynamics and the two-race engine rule, the other significant change is the fact that drivers will now only be allowed to use one set of tyres during a race. It's thought that this could be critical during the late stages of a race, especially at certain tracks, and that safety could be compromised.
"What I did notice is this - and I also saw this at Vallelunga," said the Italian. "At first, we used the 2004 configuration. The day before yesterday we used the 2005 set-up and what I noticed was the biggest difference was in medium to slow corners, while in faster corners, things don't change much, because in fast corners - I noticed this also at Jerez and Barcelona - the flat-out corners in 2004 configuration are also flat-out in 2005 configuration.
"I noticed problems with stability in medium speed corners and a bit also in slow corners," he admitted. "Having said that, I should also say that I've noticed at Vallelunga, for example, I had a faster straightline speed at the end of the straight than with the 2004 configuration, so this means that we are a bit faster on the straight as against last year and this is not going to help in terms of safety."
Does this mean we might see more overtaking then?
"No," Badoer replied. "I think that as far as the show is concerned, I don't think things will change much. It won't make overtaking easier but of course we will have a clearer idea in March.
"As far as the race is concerned, there are going to be a few things that will be different, because to do a GP with one set of tyres is indeed quite a difference. It might be that those that get the mix right maybe can get to the end with a major advantage in comparison to the others, if they get the right tyre. If there's a balance of all the cars at the end of the race, all the cars are going to be sliding around and in that case also the slightest mistakes may be made, so it might be easier to make mistakes, and there may be some more overtaking."
On the subject of rules, Badoer was asked how he feels about the two-race per engine rule. He has tried the 2005 engine, how does he feel about it?
"Well, it hasn't changed totally," he replied. "It's just an evolution of the power unit that we used in 2004. We still have some work to do on the power unit before the beginning of the championship but we are already satisfied with the results we've been able to achieve as far as the durability is concerned.
"We've been able to put in quite a number of kilometres. As far as the power is concerned I think we are very close to the power used in 2004. Of course, we have to improve a bit in terms of horsepower but the overall opinion is positive concerning the engines now, even if, of course, there is still some work to do. I think January and February are going to be two extremely important months in which to complete the development of the engine."
At present there is a major ongoing debate regarding the amount of testing planned for 2005, with Ferrari (currently) out on its own, though BAR is already known to be considering withdrawing from the 'Brazil agreement'.
"I have seen the testing schedule and I was frightened when I first saw it," he admitted, "because we basically are testing every week. We can also test during the Grand Prix weeks, so we could test much more than in the past. But what we will be doing is using our testing much more effectively, so we won't necessarily be testing more.
