While Ferrari seek solutions to reignite their championship hopes amid one of their worst starts in decades, team chief Mattia Binotto is playing down expectations as Formula 1 heads to Montreal for next week’s Canadian Grand Prix, a venue expected to favour the Italian team.
By most accounts, the point and squirt, power-friendly Circuit Gilles Villeneuve with its long straight and various fast sections should suit the Scuderia’s powerful, albeit finicky SF90.
However, when speaking to Italian journos after their disappointing Monaco weekend, Binotto played down expectations, “We need to improve ourselves race by race. We’ve got some programmes which have been launched back at Maranello to address these issues we’ve seen in the last couple of races.”
“But I don’t think there will be a magic answer in Canada. The car we will have there is the one we’ve had here, Certainly, it’s a different track, different configuration, different compounds, different setup. The only thing we can do is to prepare ourselves in the best way possible in the simulator and with our setup work.”
While undoubtedly Mercedes top the pecking order on all fronts (anything between three-tenths and seven-tenths depending on who you believe) while it’s a toss-up between Ferrari and Red Bull regarding who is closest to the benchmark. The Blues have a handy chassis with an ever-improving engine package, while the Reds have big firepower in their PU but their car does not like to turn. That’s the theory…
Binotto conceded that the pecking order behind Silver Arrows was vague, “It’s very difficult to judge, but I think we will be in better shape compared to Barcelona, but [Mercedes] still have the best and strongest car at the moment.”
“So I think they should still be ahead, but hopefully the gap will be smaller. If there is any opportunity, we will be ready to take it. As I said, it’s not the last race, Canada is not where our championship ends,” declared the Ferrari chief.
Big Question: Will Circuit Gilles Villeneuve suit Ferrari?