Bojan Vrbnjak
Let’s refresh our memory: it’s October 21, 2018 Kimi Raikkonen on the race v Austin achieved Ferrari's last victory in Formulas 1. When the royal class returns from the summer break to Spa, it will be exactly ten months since that last victory on race day, September 1st. Fans Scuderie however, they can at least have some hope that their black series will end in the race under the Ardennes.
Sebastian Vettel in Charles Leclerc they received a bold slap in the back race for the Hungarian GP. They both led to the finish line behind the winner Lewis Hamilton with a lag of more than a minute. But at Spa, and especially at the Reds ’home race at Monza, the balance of power could look different. For Christian Horner, team boss Red Bull Racing, both upcoming races are Ferrari territory. He looks at it similarly Toto Wolff, team boss Mercedes. "Hungaroring is a trail that probably doesn’t suit them. They have a powerful motor and less air resistance. Because of this, Ferrari will be very strong in Spa and Monza,”Explains Wolff and assumes that the picture there will look completely different.
And how do they see that in the reds? “I don’t know what improvements to the powertrains others will use. It looks good on paper, but we also know that we can squeeze even more out of the car,”Is cautiously optimistic Sebastian Vettel. His boss Mattia binotto but he is sure he will Ferrari in Spa and Monza again competitive. “But there is no guarantee. Our competitors are all very strong. I think the situation there will be different than in Hungary. We will prepare as best we can to win our first win of the season."
Success would also be welcome for Vettl personally. The German won his last race in August 2018 in Spa - a year ago! “There is still a lot of work ahead of us, but it is good that we are going on a break. The boys worked very hard. We have to recharge our batteries, and then the fight continues. There are paths coming that will suit us better, but overall we need to become stronger," so Sebastian Vettel. Clearly, however, Spa and Monza are probably the biggest opportunities for Ferrari in the second half of the season.
There are long planes on both tracks. Especially in the home race in Monza Ferrari should be the biggest favorite in the current situation. However, they will also need to confirm the velocity on the planes. “We know we are slow in corners and unfortunately we have them on all tracks. We would love to make a race car that is faster in corners. We do what we can, but at the moment it is not enough. Unfortunately, it is not possible to conjure a magical solution from a hat,”Added Vettel.
Even if it will Ferrari in Spa and Monza perhaps again in the forefront, but their problems are far from solved. “We should not look for an explanation for a minute of lagging behind in Hungary, but much earlier for why we were the fastest a week ago and then no more,”Is the main point Binotta, on which they must work.
Because while it is Mercedes on all the tracks in the foreground and even Red Bull in shape Max Verstappen does not work some extreme downward oscillations, the oscillations are at Ferrari huge. If they were the favorites for pole position in Hockenheim, a week later at Hungaroring they were suddenly a minute behind the top. “It didn't open our eyes, we knew it before,He shrugged Hag and explain: "It is up to us to work on this in the coming months and I hope it will look different towards the end of the year. I don’t think it’s a step backwards. We had some new parts, it was a small improvement. But it turned out that was not enough."
Ferrari therefore, after the summer break, goes to Spa-Francorchampsto seize the first opportunity to win this season’s premiere. The second will be just a week later at home Monza. If they do not take advantage of these two opportunities, then they are in danger of losing again after the 2016 season.
