Binotto addresses Ferrari revolt as he slams fake news

Charles Leclerc was denied victory in Silverstone as Carlos Sainz took the win.

Ferrari team principal Mattia Binotto has reassured that there are no issues among the Scuderia after reports that there had been a revolt following the British Grand Prix.

Ferrari’s strategists came under fire again last weekend when they took an age to allow Charles Leclerc to pass Carlos Sainz when the Monegasque was quicker, and the Prancing Horses were under pressure from Sir Lewis Hamilton behind.

Eventually Sainz was asked to move over, and Leclerc looked as though he had the win in his grasp until a late Safety Car put the team in a difficult position.

Due to the proximity between their drivers, the Maranello side decided that they did not have enough time to double stack them, so they left Leclerc out on track while pitting Sainz.

The Spaniard went on to win the race, while the 24-year-old was passed by Sergio Perez and Hamilton as he came home fourth.

READ: Charles Leclerc hoping Carlos Sainz will work with him to catch Max Verstappen

It is the second time this season that a strategic error has seen Leclerc finish P4 having been leading, so there were rumours after the race that some team members had refused to take part in Sainz’s celebration photo after he took his first-ever victory.

Leclerc said it was a “shame” to see the incorrect reports floating around, and Binotto was so surprised by what he was hearing that he checked in with his staff to make sure there were no problems.

“That was not true, when I heard or I read it, [I was] surprised,” he told Autosport.

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“What I did was to check because, you never know, maybe there is something I missed, but I checked and that was not the case at all.

“[I’m] surprised and again disappointed to read that sometimes there are things written which do not correctly say what was happening.”

READ: Did Francesco ruin Charles Leclerc’s race in Silverstone?

The Italian accepted that some team members were naturally disappointed by the way the race panned out for Leclerc, but this did not stop them congratulating Sainz.

“Yes, the team was not fully happy at the time because we lost an opportunity after the Safety Car,” explained Binotto.

“But very happy for Carlos, who won his first race ever at Silverstone. 

“He did a fantastic weekend starting from pole and then the race itself.

“The entire team was there cheering on Carlos, so no issues there.”

Leclerc and Sainz finished second and third respectively in the Austrian Grand Prix sprint race on Saturday after an exciting battle in the early stages.

Max Verstappen won the 23-lap dash, so he starts on pole for Sunday’s main race.