Formula 1 Mattia Binotto: Ferrari is faster than McLaren and closer to Mercedes

Austin’s long, straight appointment seemed to be the biggest challenge before the end of the season. However, the Ferrari SF21 seen at the US Grand Prix easily managed to win the showdown with its home rival McLaren. If Charles Leclerc takes fourth, closer to the third step of the podium on Red Bull Perez than Daniel Ricciardo worries (arriving about 25 seconds later), Carlos Sainz has something to complain about his seventh. The Spaniard, who was overtaken by Bottas-Mercedes in the final laps, lost the opportunity to finish fifth due to the unfortunate stop and contact with Australian McLaren. But he is still behind the other car from Woking, his former teammate Lando Norris.

New Appetizer 2022

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Even if Ferrari is still out of the top three – the Prancing Horse has only four podiums this year, which has barely managed to maximize chances – the performances on the track are still encouraging. A breath of fresh air, not only with the goal of taking third place in the constructors category but also and above all thinking about the 2022 revolution, when the Maranello team will launch the new power unit (the last before the mass of developments that will freeze current technology until 2025), which is the hybrid system Which first appeared in Sochi just a small appetizer. In short, the disastrous memory of 2020, whose terms were castrated by the castrated engine following the secret agreement with the Federation, seems rather remote.

binotto satisfied

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Steps forward makes team manager Mattia Binotto somewhat satisfied. Net of estimated growth of less than ten horses, the new hybrid creates the conditions for increased performance by a tenth or twenty per lap. “Now the extra power – explains the engineer in charge of the Gestione Sportiva – is fully available, and the benefits can be seen both out of the turns and at the end of the straight. Looking at the weekend in Austin, where we were racing at full power downhill, somehow our top speeds were like everyone else’s. Another. So, given the situation last season, the step forward is very big. We know that there is still a gap in terms of the best engine, but we think the gap now is not so big anymore.”

The fight between Ferrari and McLaren

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With five races remaining, Ferrari drastically reduced the delay behind McLaren in the battle for third place in the constructors’ classification with only 3.5 points left. A trend that bodes well for Binotto in light of the rest of the world championship: “Overall, I think in the general lap balance we were clearly faster than McLaren this weekend. On paper, the track didn’t have to adapt well to the characteristics of our car and that’s why the I’m particularly satisfied with the progress we’ve seen in the last few races. The power unit’s help is definitely felt, both in qualifying and in the race. And it gives me confidence for the next couple of years.”