Ferrari face extreme pressure at home Italian Grand Prix

Ferrari will be racing on home turf for the sixty-fifth edition of the Italian Grand Prix at Monza this weekend, where the pressure will be extreme for the Maranello outfit.

Just a few days after the Belgian race, Formula 1 is back on track for the 14th round of the world championship, which is also the last European race before a final leg made up entirely of flyaway events.

“It’s a nice place to go,” says Kimi Raikkonen of the Monza track “A traditional circuit with a lot of history. It’s completely different from all the other circuits.”

“It’s a home Grand Prix for us and this makes it a bit busier for us, but also for a lot of fans. Last year I could do well in qualifying, but not so good during the start of the race.”

“However, I think the result was OK after what had happened. I’d love to win there and hopefully this year we can do better.”

Diego Ioverno, Race Team Manager of Scuderia Ferrari, added, “The mix between the extreme pressure that we feel trying to do our best in the race in Italy and the massive passion and support that all our fans usually give us when we are in Monza is very special.”

“It’s impressive to see in the stands how many people wear something red. For us it’s also a place where we can join our supporters, as well as our sponsors and technical partners. So, all departments have to join in and everyone will be there helping.”

“Technically, the circuit is unique, it’s the quickest of the Championship. There are impressive braking areas, but also reasonably quick corners. The braking areas are the ones where you can make the difference. So, power unit and brake system are normally the most stressed parts of the cars,” added Ioverno.

Ferrari have yet to win a race this season. Earlier this year they were the ones that took the fight to the dominant Mercedes team, but lost their momentum and before the summer break dropped behind Red Bull in the pecking order.

Pressure from big boss Sergio Marchionne has been constant, while the patriotic but demanding Italian media is more often than not the team's Achilles heel.

The last time the Reds won at Monza was back in 2010 when Fernando Alonso triumphed at the venue.