Ferrari can win the championship, say Leclerc and Red Bull

The fall of Charles Leclerc in Spain and Azerbaijan and the interim strategic collapse of Ferrari in Monaco have meant that Scuderia director Matthias Binotto has not even mentioned this year’s Maranello’s title prospects, saying it was his goal for 2022 from the start , to become competitive again, not to win Formula 1 titles.

Still, the Italian confirms in his own words that the Ferrari F1-75 – in the absence of mechanical problems – proved in Baku (after the heavy defeat in Miami) that it is now a car capable of winning even on fast circuits with long straights is lines, in former Red Bull RB18 strongholds – thanks to its new rear wing. In addition, the Italian team showed the strategic acumen of the championship in Baku, which they lacked in Monaco.

“From a strategic point of view”, said the Italian “Charles’ team reacted very well at the time of the Virtual Safety Vehicle because Charles was very close to the pit entrance at the time. We were very attentive.” But the wear rate of the hard tire was very low from what we saw. We felt very strong at the front with durable tires and Charles was very happy with the car’s performance.”

The new flat rear wing, which Ferrari debuted in Baku, solved a major problem for Scuderia: how vulnerable Leclerc was to Ferstappen’s long straight attacks.

It was something Cavallino took a long time, and until Leclerc’s pit stop on lap 10 of Baku, Ferstappen couldn’t find a way to cross it even at the end of the Azerbaijani capital’s huge 2.2km straight.

“With that kind of (low) lift data I don’t think we’re that big a disadvantage against Red Bull, our speeds were similar,” explained Binoto after the Azerbaijan GP. “Both with DRS in the qualifying tests and without in the race, it was enough to fight, keep Max behind us and defend.

“So yes I think the rear wing is working as expected, it has a similar performance to Red Bull in a similar lift production and that gives me confidence that we can use what we need to use without any problems.”

It all ended with Leclerc’s retirement on lap 20 in front of a puff of smoke billowing from the F1-75 engine.

“To be honest, Ferrari wasn’t aware beforehand of the problems that its cars would pose in Baku.” said Binoto. “With the telemetry data we cannot have definite answers to the problems. The components must be sent back to Maranello, examined and the problem identified in order to solve it as quickly as possible.” closed.

Leclerc and Horner: Ferrari will stand on its own two feet

What Binoto doesn’t want to say is that the Scuderia still have high hopes for this year’s F1 Championships, say Charles Leclerc and RBR director Christian Horner.

When asked if his confidence in the team had been shaken, Leclerc abruptly replied “no” and continued: “Every cancellation is difficult. It’s not the third in a row but to be honest I also felt like I left Monaco. It’s the third disappointment in a row and it’s not easy. In general I’m sure that I will be like this.” mentally as strong as possible.” I managed the league five games ago and the motivation is still there.

We have to solve the reliability problem, as a team we have to take such a step. I believe that as long as we address these issues, we can win the championship. “We’ve lost a lot of points in the last three games and we have to solve that.”

For his part, Horner emphasized: “I think (Ferrari) has a very fast car, especially on Saturday. On Sundays, I think we were equally fast in almost every race we’ve done this year. And I think it happened in Baku, at least after what we’ve seen.” the first rounds. .

You will solve their problems. I have no doubt about that. However, this inevitably means that at the end of the year there will be penalties (for exceeding the number of spare parts of the unit). Of course, there is still a long way to go before this championship. We’ve seen great results“Changes in the last four or five games and that shows how quickly things can change.”

What the Brit doesn’t share with Binoto is who would have won in Baku if Leclerc’s Ferrari engine hadn’t blown.

“It’s a shame in many ways that the battle didn’t unfold because I think we had a very efficient car. I think we would strategically beat Charles with the choice we made. But we’ll never know. The most important thing is.” We took advantage of their bad luck and picked up the points and our championship is going well at the moment. But as I said, that can change quickly.” concluded Christian Horner.