Ferrari boss Mattia Binotto has suggested Mercedes’ struggles are not purely down to the team’s porpoising issues. The Silver Arrows have struggled with the bouncing all season with George Russell struggling to handle his car on Friday.
However, Binotto has claimed Ferrari is also struggling with the same issue despite their dominant start to the season. He confirmed the Prancing Horse were ‘still suffering with it’ four races into the campaign.
He said the team had taken some steps to reduce the effects but warned the issue had not yet been ‘solved’. Both Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz’s head was also seen jumping around as they tackled the old-school Imola circuit.
However, Leclerc was able to extend his championship lead to 40 points with his second-place finish yesterday. Team-mate Sainz also jumped Russell after a fourth-placed finish to regain second in the standings.
READ MORE: Toto Wolff agrees with Lewis Hamilton as Mercedes problems worsen
The Ferrari boss suggested he was completely unsure why some teams were struggling more. He even questioned whether some teams claims that porpoising was the main factor were ‘true or not’.
Binotto said: “I don’t know why the others are not as quick as we are with porpoising. But it’s true that we are still suffering with it. We put some actions on the car to try to mitigate it, but it’s not yet addressed and solved.”
“We are certainly trying to develop the car in order to address it, definitely, because it’s not the best situation, certainly for a driver, to drive and to somehow attack corners without getting there, and braking with such porpoising. But why the others are suffering more than us? I don’t know. Is it true or not? I don’t know. Is that down to the porpoising or not? I don’t know.”
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff described the Mercedes as ‘undriveable’ ahead of the sprint yesterday.
DON’T MISS
Toto Wolff sets Lewis Hamilton with bare ‘minimum’ target for Imola GP [INSIGHT]
George Russell achievement rubbished as Mercedes told they’re way out [ANALYSIS]
Toto Wolff appeared ‘annoyed’ and ‘angry’ at Lewis Hamilton [COMMENT]
He revealed the excessive bouncing on Russell’s car had even broken a floor stat, designed to boost stability. The German manufacturer struggled for pace all weekend with the pair knocked out in Q2 on Friday.
They failed to make up lost ground in the sprint with Russell finishing 11th and Hamilton dropping back one place to 14th. After the race, Hamilton claimed Mercedes’ chances of fighting for the crown this season were slim.
He explained: “We haven’t got it right this year but everyone is working as hard as they can to correct it. This is the situation that we are faced with and we are obviously not fighting for the Championship but we are fighting to understand this car and improve and progress through the year. That is all we can hope for right now.”
