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Mattia Binotto: Mercedes took a risk and won

The head of the Ferrari team does not believe that Ferrari made a mistake in Mexico, much more believes that Mercedes, because he was behind them, took a risk and therefore won.

Photo: HB Press

As usual, Mattia Binotto, the head of the Ferrari team did not want to speak. “If the two racers start the race from the first starting row, then of course you expect more than just second and fourth place. Our speed was good, we don’t have to hide here. It was clear to us that the race was not going to be easy. In the end, though, Mercedes was behind us, making them take risks and win. They decided to make a stop relatively quickly and then finish the race on a hard tire mix. If you’re leading the race, you can’t afford that kind of risk. We are disappointed that we could not keep the first place."

According to Binott, Ferrari did nothing wrong in the race in Mexico, but in the end Mercedes was looking forward to the victory with Lewis Hamilton - Photo: Hasan Bratić-HB Press

Charles Leclerc he thought after the race that he should have done more himself influence the strategy. But binotto menu: “I do not believe that we should take a different strategy from him. I definitely agree with him in terms of why he didn’t feel good in the second part of the race on an identical tire mix. He was wasting his time at that moment, but he should have made up for it. Then there’s the problem with his stop, where he lost a good three seconds. If all this did not happen, then the picture would be completely different. It also didn’t help that the tires overheated if you followed the competitor in front of you closely."

At Ferrari, they are the only ones wondering why the second set of medium tire mix at Leclerc was worse than the first one - Photo: Hasan Bratić-HB Press

O Sebastian Vettl but he thought: “Sebastian won a very good second place. Discussing strategy over the radio is not uncommon. The racer himself feels best how the tires behave. At this point, Seb was well on his way, so he wanted to stay on track. But we must also keep in mind the fact of how to make a stop so that Vettel does not return to the track in traffic."

In the case of Sebastian Vettl, Binotto calculated that at Hamilton towards the end of the race the tires would loosen and the German could attack first place, but this unfortunately did not happen.

O the course of the race so the head of the Ferrari team added: “I believe Mercedes has not surpassed us in terms of speed. We were sure the tires on the Hamilton race car would loosen towards the end of the race, but that didn’t happen. That was the biggest surprise for me at the race. It was about the behavior of the tires, which I personally did not count on," so binottowhich further emphasizes: "I'm glad we're going to Austin right away. Because I saw a disappointed team in the evening, but that just shows me how very ambitious we are. We travel to Texas with hope and a desire to repeat last year’s victory."                                           

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