Binotto Hopes Mercedes and Red Bull Can Play Catchup to Ferrari Next Year

Ferrari didn’t have the best of seasons in 2020, finishing a paltry 6th in the constructor’s standings with just 131 points. The opening race of the new season saw the team have a good result in Bahrain; however, team boss Mattia Binotto says the 2022 power unit will be the one to look out for.

In Bahrain, Charles Leclerc finished in 6th place while his Spanish teammate, Carlos Sainz, came 8th. The Maranello-based outfit have 12 points under their belt and sit in fourth place behind McLaren in the standings.

The next race is Ferrari’s home Grand Prix in Imola. The Scuderia hopes that they can make the Tifosi proud by having a great result and even aiming for a win or a chance at the podium.

Ferrari will have a power unit that will catch its rivals says Binotto

The team principal for the Italian team, Mattia Binotto said, “Hopefully by next year, when we will again have a new power unit, we may catch up or have a benchmark for the others. I think on the aero as well  medium and high-speed downforce.”

“I think it’s an entire package again. But now the differences are closer and closer. More important is I think we are working in the right direction with the right tools and that will make us stronger in the future,” Binotto concluded.

Sainz wants to push himself to have better results

Carlos Sainz scored his first points for the Italian team by finishing eighth in the season opener in Bahrain. However, he stated he made some mistakes but that he has learned from them and will be more aggressive in the next race.

In the post-race interview, Sainz said, “I had a poor start. Basically, due to a couple of mistakes, but also me consistently taking it, maybe, a bit too easy in Lap 1, just wanting to make sure I made it through that Lap 1 and making sure that I was getting to know the car in dirty air conditions.”

“It [was] a completely new experience, completely new car, so I wanted to take it easy and wanted to make sure I did the whole race. Then once I got myself into clean air, honestly, I was very quick, so I’m not going to complain, I’m going to take it and take it as a learning curve and keep improving,” Sainz concluded.

The next stop of the season is at Imola for the Italian Grand Prix. Can Sainz push the limits of the car and give Ferrari the result they want in their home Grand Prix? What did you think of Sainz’s first race in red? Let us know in the comments below.

Also Read : Did Sainz Spoil Ferrari Strategy Before Bahrain GP? – “Fernando Must’ve Been Rubbing His Hands”