After a terrible performance on the Paul Ricard Circuit, the Styrian Grand Prix was a positive weekend for Ferrari. Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc indulge in a Red Bull-like racing pace (in Sainz ‘words) and finished 6th and 7th. But the result in Styria, team boss Mattia Binotto admitted, does not mean that Ferrari has all worries for them Season are over – and he added that getting their problems under control was more important than beating rival McLaren for P3 in this year’s Constructors’ Championship.
Tire grain problems were identified as the main culprit for Ferrari at the French Grand Prix as their cars came out of the points in 11th and 16th. But they seemed to get these problems under control at the Red Bull Ring, where the two drivers finished sixth and seventh after a somewhat disappointing qualifying in which Leclerc and Sainz started the race in 7th and 12th place. Leclerc in particular showed great speed as he recovered from a front wing damage on lap 1 and finished just 12 seconds behind his teammate.
READ MORE: Sainz says that the Ferrari pace is comparable to Red Bull while fighting his way from P12 to P6 at the Styrian GP
But Binotto nonetheless predicted a recurrence of Ferrari’s problems in the upcoming races this year.
“We have undoubtedly not fully addressed the question of France,” said Binotto. “When we return to France we could have done a few things differently and improved our performance there. But I think overall the car has some weaknesses that you haven’t seen here and there when you go to Silverstone, Silverstone can be a difficult track for us again – fast corners with a lot of energy in the tires.
Both Sainz and Leclerc were able to cut their way through the field at the Red Bull Ring
“More important in my opinion is the approach,” he added. “The team’s reaction in Austria worked really well and I’m pretty sure that if it’s a difficult track for us, Silverstone will undoubtedly be better than France.”
Ferrari’s colons at the Styrian Grand Prix enabled them to beat constructor rivals McLaren by four points, reducing the gap between the two teams to 12 points – only Lando Norris could score for McLaren after fifth.
READ MORE: “One of those days when I really didn’t love this sport,” says Ricciardo after the Styrian GP fights
But Binotto admitted that he only had one eye on the constructors’ battle this year and believed that a long-term perspective was more important to improving Ferrari’s performance.
“How important is it for us to get points with McLaren? It’s not, ”said Binotto. “As I said at the start of the season, our main goal is to make sure we move forward with the next year and seasons and make sure we do better in every single area to make sure we get out of the mistake , for example in France.
Binotto said the constructors’ battle with McLaren isn’t his main concern in 2021
“Third place is a goal for us, but not the most important thing,” he added. “The most important thing is that we improve as a team and remain competitive in the future. So yes, great, we scored a few points with the constructors, but that shouldn’t be our top priority for the season.
READ MORE: Driver of the Day Leclerc praises “one of my best accomplishments” as he recovers from a Gasly incident for P7
“And the fact that, unlike McLaren, our drivers are fine – I am not judging the others, I will not start, I will only judge ourselves and I will say that I am very proud of the way our drivers are doing insert. “The crew.”
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