adminROME. − It’s taken half a decade and a pandemic for it to happen, but Ferrari are finally back at the top of Formula 1.
The ride along the way has been bumpy − with the jettisoning of a four-time champion, a brush with the regulations, the team sinking to a 40-year low, and a rule change.
After all that, though, Ferrari this year have the fastest car in the field − at least in Charles Leclerc’s hands and over one lap. And they are bona fide title contenders again, even if Red Bull and Max Verstappen look an increasingly tough challenge.
How have they done it?
Team principal Mattia Binotto pauses to consider.
“It’s an interesting question but as well a difficult one,” he says, explaining that there is more to the transformation than just technical improvements.
“The right reasons do not come [down] to the technical aspect, that we changed the [engine] combustion, [and] we improved our aerodynamics. That’s [only] the consequence.
“It is about building a team. The effort put in since 2017 has been step by step to build the right team. And with the right team, you can achieve the goals and targets. It’s all about the team.”
In an exclusive interview with BBC Sport, Binotto for the first time explains in detail the journey that has brought the sport’s most famous team back to competitiveness.
He discussed:
◆ Lessons from the collapse of Ferrari’s title challenges in 2017 and 2018
◆ The controversy over the legality of their engine in 2019
◆ How they bounced back from 2020, their worst season in 40 years
◆ Leclerc’s rise and growth
◆ Their 2022 title challenge
The story of Ferrari’s return to title contention starts five years ago, when they were last in a similar position. − BBC Sport.
Mathew Masinge
Online Reporter