Ferrari team principal Mattia Binotto has asked for “patience” as he believes that it could take many years before the Formula One team is back to a winning cycle.<\/p>\n
The difficult weekend at Spa saw the Italian manufacturer struggle with the lack of engine power and difficulties in turning the tyres on. Both Charles Leclerc and Sebastian Vettel both failed to make it into Q3, and neither was able to finish in the points.<\/p>\n
Ferrari is searching for why it was so uncompetitive at Spa, but Binotto says he is under no illusion about the timescales involved before Ferrari is on top again.<\/p>\n
He told Motorsport.com, \u201cHow long it will take? I think that if you look back at all the winning cycles it is always many years. There are no silver bullets in F1. Patience and stability is required.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ferrari\u2019s hopes of making any dramatic step forward with its car this season have not been helped by a development freeze on the current cars, agreed as part of cost-saving measures because of coronavirus. This means that progress could be limited and the recovery may need to wait until the 2022 regulation changes.<\/p>\n
Binotto added, \u201cThe engine is frozen this season, so there is nothing we can do on that. We are developing it for next season, and it is progressing well on the dyno at the moment.<\/p>\n
\u201cOn the car there are some restriction, so what’s the plan for us? The main plan is focusing on the next seasons – not only 2021 but also certainly as well 2022. In order to do well in the next season, we also need to try to understand the weaknesses of today and make sure that we are addressing them.\u201d<\/p>\n
Following the race at Spa, Binotto suggested that one of the reasons Ferrari is struggling this season is that several weaknesses with its car had been exposed by a drop in engine power.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Haas team principal Gunther Steiner says he gets “no satisfaction” from fighting the works Ferrari squad for minor places outside the points. Romain Grosjean finished fifteenth just under four seconds behind Sebastian Vettel, with him having to cede a place to teammate Charles Leclerc.<\/p>\n
In the past being that close to the works Ferrari cars would be hugely encouraging for customer squad Haas but Steiner says the circumstances give him no pleasure. He told Autosport, \u201cObviously you get a little bit of satisfaction out of it, at least you race something. But to be honest, nobody is coming here to try to beat someone for 12th or 13th position.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat’s not why you come here. When you’re out there on Sunday and you race someone you feel excited about it, but when you think about it, you’re really doing something which is not very satisfying, beating somebody who is struggling as well in the moment.\u201d<\/p>\n
Steiner said there was no satisfaction, but the speed deficit of the Ferrari cars was no surprise given the drop in pace by the team since the controversial private engine settlement with the FIA. He says that Haas knew where they were.<\/p>\n
He says that Monza would be a difficult weekend, where they need to get the best out of what they have got.<\/p>\n
Asked about prospects for the 2021 Ferrari power unit, Steiner said he had posed the same question himself. Saying, \u201cThe clock is running, because this year we cannot do anything about the engine.\u201d<\/p>\n
Adding, \u201cI don’t know exactly where they are for next year. I know that they are working on it, because you can imagine I ask that question every day, every hour.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Mercedes F1 CEO and team principal Toto Wolff says that teams should open up radio communications to entertain the fans. A largely uneventful race in Belgium and the teams continued dominance of the 2020 season have led to some disappointment among fans.<\/p>\n
Mercedes looking odds-on to win both world championships once again, despite what appears to be calm, Wolff insists there is a lot more going on internally than people might suspect, with concerns about reliability and so on.<\/p>\n
He believes that putting that across to the public by allowing broadcast of internal discussions that don\u2019t involve the driver would be good for the show.<\/p>\n
He told Motorsport.com, \u201cI understand what the fans say, and there are some races which are not very entertaining, and then there are others which are the contrary.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI think it would be too easy to say there are good football games and there are bad football games, but as a matter of fact, nobody wants to see a team running away with the championship.\u201d Wolff says that there is a lot more drama going on internally than is broadcast, maybe opening that up could be an additional way of enhancing the entertainment factor.<\/p>\n
He also says the six \u2018new\u2019 venues or ones which haven\u2019t been used for years, at Mugello, oval in Shahir, N\u00fcrburgring, Portimao, Imola and Istanbul, should be entertaining<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Carlos Sainz has admitted that Ferrari which he will join for 2021 will have a long way to go before catching up to the front runners. The Spaniard will join the team which has been underperformance and disappointing season.<\/p>\n
Ferrari heads to Monza, their home Grand Prix which Charles Leclerc won last year, off the back of their worst finishing result in a decade in Belgium. Speaking to Sky Sports after failing to start at Spa, Sainz conceded that Ferrari has a lot of room for improvement.<\/p>\n
He said, \u201cOf course I want [Ferrari to improve], I’ll be the first one in the factory pushing to find more power and I’ll be pushing everyone as soon as I get there.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFerrari has a lot of resources, a lot of power benches, so I’m sure they’re there at the factory working hard to get the power they’ve lost. It’s a long way – they need to do a very, very, very, very big step to get back to where we all are but if anyone can do it, it’s Ferrari.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sainz also said how hard it is to see the struggles at his new team and expressed the need for change. He says that the team are not happy with their performance this year.<\/p>\n
Adding, \u201cWhen you lose so much power from one year to the other – which is not the normal trend in F1, normally you expect to stay the same or gain – you know at Spa you’re going to get in trouble.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Carlos Sainz says that drivers now feel less “fear” at Spa because of the increased presence of tarmac run-off areas. For this year\u2019s race, the artificial grass that lined much of the track was removed as part of the circuit organisation\u2019s efforts to adapt the track for motorcycle racing.<\/p>\n
Sainz says that the balance says that drivers now feel less “fear” at Spa because of the increased presence of tarmac run-off areas. Saying that the only thing that the circuit is missing was the gravel and grass by the exit kerbs meaning the risk verse reward is out of sync.<\/p>\n
For this year\u2019s race, the artificial grass that lined much of the track was removed as part of the circuit organisation\u2019s efforts to adapt the track for motorcycle racing.<\/p>\n
He told Motorsport.com, \u201cI feel like the only thing Spa is missing now is the gravel and the grass next to the exit kerbs. Now we have a bit too much as far as the feel of risk, and the paying of risk\/reward is not good enough in these modern circuits.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cEven though safety is primary, I think there’s still a compromise to be found with tarmac run-off areas. Although the combination of sector two and Eau Rouge and everything is incredible, I think there’s still work to do to try and make more of a penalty for the drivers when you run wide.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sainz says that the drivers have spoken to the FIA to see how the drivers can make sure there is a bit more risk and reward at fast corners.<\/p>\n
FIA race director Michael Masi acknowledged that Spa was now \u201cmore forgiving\u201d, but suggested that track limit measures kept drivers in line. Saying, \u201cIt’s not a secret here that the Spa circuit is working on an FIM licence, and getting motorcycles back, and artificial grasses are not part of that.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo that’s why it’s been removed. And I think, yes, it may have been more forgiving in certain areas. But we also saw from a track limits perspective that we’ve got other measures that we’ve used throughout the year that have been put in place.\u201d<\/p>\n
He says that the track limits will be monitored in the same way using CCTV, on boards, with timing loops.<\/p>\n
Asked about the sausage kerbs which contributed to Alex Peroni\u2019s spectacular F3 accident last year, Masi noted that they will still be in use next weekend.<\/p>\n
Saying, \u201cWith all track safety parameters, we can look and see what we can improve and learn from everything. So with regards to Monza, there’s several sausage kerbs that are still in there.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Esteban Ocon believes that Renault\u2019s performance at the Belgian Grand Prix means he is convinced the French manufacturer can now fight for third in the constructors’ championship.<\/p>\n
Ocon and teammate Daniel Ricciardo helped deliver Renault their best qualifying performance since returning as a works team in Belgium, with the pair going on to finish fourth and fifth in the race. This should give the team a chance of challenging for third in the championship, with currently nine points between Renault, McLaren, Ferrari and Racing Point.<\/p>\n
Asked by Motorsport.com, if Renault could push itself to the front of the chasing pack for third place overall, Ocon said \u201cYeah, we can. We can. There’s ten more races to go, so we are only in the beginning of the season, more or less.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThere’s a long, long way of course, but it’s very nice to see that we are coming into that fight very nicely. We need to get consistent at scoring and we don’t want to have a second Barcelona for sure. What’s important is to get the points and that’s what we’ve done this weekend.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ricciardo is expecting Renault to be on the pace at Monza, where he is expecting to be competitive again.<\/p>\n
Saying, \u201cComing into Monza next week, I think we can expect to be competitive again. That would be certainly a pretty strong assumption at least from my side.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ocon said that at Spa had been a huge boost to him in particular, after a sometimes challenging first phase to his F1 return. Adding \u201cI think it is very, very encouraging. To be there with the Red Bull it’s nice you know. Very, very nice. We need to do that obviously a lot more consistently.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The FIA has announced a full review of the way that super licence points are awarded to avoid drivers being disadvantaged by the Coronavirus. The government introduced a new points-based system for drivers to gain a super licence required to race in F1 in 2016 as part of its restructuring of the junior single-seater ladder.<\/p>\n
This means that drivers need to gain forty points in three seasons in other championships, which encourages them rise through the FIA\u2019s single-seater ladder to gain experience and accrue the required points.<\/p>\n
Many racing seasons have been shortened or altered as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. It has also brought into question future participation in series due to budget constraints facing many young drivers, and the uncertainty facing championships.<\/p>\n
In a statement, the governing body said it was conducting a full review to make sure that the pathway from junior series to the top of motorsport \u201ccontinues to provide competitors with fair and equitable opportunities to progress.\u201d<\/p>\n
the FIA said in a statement, \u201cThe measures being explored by the FIA Super Licence Working Group, in consultation with a wide variety of circuit racing teams, promoters and drivers, also seek to safeguard potentially vulnerable series by specifically targeting the encouragement of participation once competitive activity resumes.\u201d<\/p>\n
The statement says that the disparity is likely because of varying restarts and some series being cancelled this year. President of the FIA Single-Seater Commission Stefano Domenicali said the \u201cprofound effect\u201d felt by motorsport in the COVID-19 pandemic had prompted the review.<\/p>\n
Domenicali said, \u201cMany circuit racing series are experiencing economic difficulty, while competitors are naturally concerned about missing a season or committing to a competition amid uncertainty around the re-commencement of racing, and the negative impact either may have on their progress along the FIA\u2019s single-seater pathway.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Binotto calls for \u201cpatience\u201d with Ferrari recovery Ferrari team principal Mattia Binotto has asked for “patience” as he believes that it could take many years before the Formula One team is back to a winning cycle. The difficult weekend at Spa saw the Italian manufacturer struggle with the lack of engine power and difficulties in<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":7380,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[46,264,265,369,390,456,464,493,647,664,675,709,712,754,799,837,877,882,885,980,981,1278,1287,1291,1298,1325,1624,1656,1707,1791,1897,2031,2035],"class_list":["post-7956","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news-analysis","tag-46","tag-belgian-gp","tag-belgian-grand-prix","tag-carlos-sainz-jr","tag-charles-leclerc","tag-coronavirus","tag-covid-19","tag-daniel-ricciardo","tag-esteban-ocon","tag-f1","tag-f1-today","tag-ferrari","tag-fia","tag-formula-one","tag-future-of-f1","tag-global-pathway","tag-gunther-steiner","tag-haas","tag-haas-ferrari","tag-italian-gp","tag-italian-grand-prix","tag-mattia-binotto","tag-mclaren","tag-mclaren-renault","tag-mercedes","tag-michael-masi","tag-radio-communication","tag-renault","tag-romain-grosjean","tag-sebastian-vettel","tag-stefano-domenicali","tag-toto-wolff","tag-track-desgin"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.f1vault.co.uk\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7956","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.f1vault.co.uk\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.f1vault.co.uk\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.f1vault.co.uk\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.f1vault.co.uk\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7956"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/www.f1vault.co.uk\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7956\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.f1vault.co.uk\/index\/wp-json\/"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.f1vault.co.uk\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7956"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.f1vault.co.uk\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7956"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.f1vault.co.uk\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7956"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}