Ferrari announced that they will unveil their Formula 1 car for the 2020 season on February 11. They are hoping to win the Formula 1 world championship title next year after more than a decade-long drought.

Team boss Mattia Binotto declared the launch date during Ferrari's Christmas media lunch at Maranello. In the process, the 2019 constructors' championship runners-up became the first team to confirm their car launching plan to the public.

Last season, Ferrari failed to build on their pre-season form. However, they still managed to appear like a team to beat. Their campaign was boosted after the summer break, when they won three consecutive races.

Although they fell short once again, there were some positive signs. It has become clear that Ferrari now has the best engine on the grid. Another positive news was that Charles Leclerc took more pole positions than anyone.

Ferrari F2001
The Ferrari F2001 that sold for $7.5m on display in New York. Getty Images

Binotto clarified that Ferrari will be changing its strategy next season. In the process, they are to unveil a launch-spec car much earlier than they did this year, accompanied by further development and tweaks before conducting their first test.

He said, "We will launch the car very early. I think we will be the earliest. The reason why we are anticipating the launch and the unveiling and then moving on is we must do some dyno homologations before going to Barcelona. We are launching the car on 11th February 2020. Soon after we've got an intense program of bench [testing] before we go to Barcelona."

A few days earlier, Binotto explained that Ferrari lost the 2019 championship months before the season had started. The problems with their car's handling became evident in Australia during the first race of the year. It was quite surprising for the team members, as the team aced their pre-season testing.

Next year, F1 teams will have two less days of pre-season testing in Barcelona. The first of the two three-day tests will run between 19th and 21st February, while the second will take place between 26th and 28th February.

The 2020 season will see 22 full races, which is about to set a record. A new Grand Prix event will be organised in Vietnam, while F1 will return to The Netherlands' iconic Zandvoort circuit after 35 years. The last time a Dutch GP took place was in 1985. The 2020 season begins on 15th March with the Australian Grand Prix.