Breaking news
Formula 1
Binotto says upgrades show Ferrari heading in right direction
Ferrari team principal Mattia Binotto is confident the Maranello outfit is moving in the "right direction" now, after its latest update brought some encouragement at last weekend's Eifel Grand Prix.
Jonathan Noble
Edited: Oct 15, 2020, 6:46 PM
Copy link
Share on Viber
After some recent struggles, Ferrari has rolled out a phased upgrade package over the last two races. It included revised nose and plough design, a tweaked rear wing plus changes to the bargeboard area.
Read Also:
- The Ferrari updates that gave an "unexpected" boost to Leclerc
- Leclerc: Fifth in qualifying beyond Ferrari's expectations
The revisions were not aimed at delivering a massive step forward in pace but instead were more about the team finding a good correlation between its factory work and what happens on track – something that had not always been perfect in the past.
However, Charles Leclerc delivered a morale-boosting fourth place on the grid at the Nurburgring, although his hopes in the race were hit by a poor first stint where he suffered from excessive graining. He eventually finished seventh.
In the wake of some pretty big struggles in previous races, Binotto said that he takes encouragement from the fact that the team seems to be moving forward and understanding its car more now.
"I think we were not expecting a lot of difference," he explained about the changes. "It was a small upgrade and it was completing a package we started introducing in Russia.
"The positive is that it was correlating well with what we saw in the wind tunnel and back in the factory. And that somehow means we are moving the car in the right direction.
"There will be some more further upgrades during the remainder of the season, which will be as well important. And for us, what's key is the team developing the car, and more important, making sure the direction we are taking the car is the right one."
Leclerc said at the Nurburgring that he had been surprised Ferrari went so well there, with the circuit layout and cold conditions not expected to suit the team.
"Looking back at the weekend, I think there are quite a bit of positives," he said. "I did not expect to be so competitive, with the cold weather like that and the car was handling quite well. So this was positive.
"I think the smallest updates that we brought this weekend worked also in the right direction. It wasn't a massive step, but that was not what we were searching for.
"It was a small step going in the right direction. And this is also positive. Now we just need to understand why the first stint on the soft was so affected by graining, but I'm quite pleased with the way the weekend has gone."
We want your opinion!
What would you like to see on Motorsport.com?
Take our 5 minute survey.
- The Motorsport.com Team
Read and post comments
Read also :
Share Or Save This Story
Copy link
Share on Viber
Previous article Ricciardo: Renault no longer a "hit or miss" car
Next article How Hulkenberg inspired Racing Point upgrade package
Top Comments
There are no comments at the moment. Would you like to write one?
View More & Comment
More from
Jonathan Noble
Brundle awarded OBE in King’s New Year’s honours
Formula 1
Formula 1
Brundle awarded OBE in King’s New Year’s honours
The new rules dilemma that will define the 2025 F1 season
Formula 1
Formula 1
The new rules dilemma that will define the 2025 F1 season
Verstappen issues Red Bull title warning in push for RB21 progress
Formula 1
Formula 1
Australian GP
Verstappen issues Red Bull title warning in push for RB21 progress
More from
Scuderia Ferrari
Charles Leclerc and Pecco Bagnaia: From kings to princes
MotoGP
MotoGP
Charles Leclerc and Pecco Bagnaia: From kings to princes
Sainz blasts "most unfair penalty ever", seeks stewards' explanation
Formula 1
Formula 1
Australian GP
Sainz blasts "most unfair penalty ever", seeks stewards' explanation
Calado: "Difficult" for WEC Hypercar newcomers "to win straight off"
WEC
WEC
Calado: "Difficult" for WEC Hypercar newcomers "to win straight off"
Latest news
Chip Ganassi Racing signs Alessandro de Tullio for 2027 Indy NXT Season, adds IndyCar reserve role
Indy NXT
IndL Indy NXT 23 min
Chip Ganassi Racing signs Alessandro de Tullio for 2027 Indy NXT Season, adds IndyCar reserve role
Jorge Lorenzo describes Marc Marquez as “the Ayrton Senna of motorcycling”
MotoGP
MGP MotoGP
Qatar GP
56 min
Jorge Lorenzo describes Marc Marquez as “the Ayrton Senna of motorcycling”
The new records set by Toyota's Hypercar trio with WEC 2026 title
WEC
WEC WEC
Monza
1 h
The new records set by Toyota's Hypercar trio with WEC 2026 title
Max Verstappen explains why he’s so good in the rain in Brazil
Formula 1
F1 Formula 1
Sao Paulo GP
2 h
Max Verstappen explains why he’s so good in the rain in Brazil
Feature
Discover prime content
Top 10 F1 cars of the 1970s
Formula 1
By Kevin Turner
Top 10 F1 cars of the 1970s
Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
You have 2 options:
- Become a subscriber.
- Disable your adblocker.
Subscribe now Already subscribed? Sign in here
Already disabled your adblocker?
Reload page
Manage Alerts
Subscribe