Ferrari team principal Mattia Binotto has expressed surprise at the ‘huge difference in design’ of this season’s new F1cars.
The first three days of pre-season testing at Barcelona’s Circuit de Catalunya recently provided the first opportunity for all 10 teams to reveal their own interpretations of the new aerodynamic regulations.
Ferrari’s F1-75 notably caught the eye and proved reliable as drivers Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz racked up the laps, but it was the variety in the designs that Binotto caught unawares.
“Overall, on the pace, it is very early to judge but I can see that we are all very close which was one of the objectives of the new regulations,” said Binotto. “It is quite impressive to see that we are so close straight from the start.
“And if you look at the cars they are so different, which I think no one was expecting, so many differences between the design and shapes which is great for F1.
“But again, when you look at the lap times, certainly there will be differences but it was not as huge as the difference in design.”
Pride and pleasure working for Ferrari
Ferrari head into the new season with its sights set on disrupting the top two teams in Mercedes and Red Bull following an improved campaign last year at the end of which it finished third in the constructors’ championship.
Binotto feels there is now a more “united” front within the Scuderia which is proving critical to the team’s progress.
“There have been difficult moments for us, certainly 2020 but as well 2021 and when you are in such a difficult situation, remaining united, trying to work hard and do your best is never easy,” added Binotto.
“And when I look at the car itself I think at first it is beautiful. Maybe not as fast now but certainly beautiful.
“It is really a great pride because I am proud of the team itself and that, for me, it is really a pleasure to work with all of them. It is the way we are working which is our vision.”
