Ferrari must be ready to address any weaknesses of their 2022 car as soon as possible if they are to succeed in the new era of Formula 1, team principal Mattia Binotto has said.
The Maranello-based team finished third in the Constructors’ Championship last campaign after a season-long battle with McLaren to be best of the rest.
And, with sweeping regulation changes coming into effect in 2022, Ferrari fans are hopeful that the Scuderia will enjoy a lot more success in this new era of Formula 1 than it has in the last decade.
Binotto believes that the difference in performance between teams could be especially big next season, as is often the case when large changes to the regulations are made.
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“It may happen that at the beginning of the season there will be a [large] difference in performance between the various single-seaters due to the different regulatory interpretations and the solutions found,” Binotto said.
Continuing, the Italian said Ferrari’s ability to understand their 2022 challenger’s weaknesses and swiftly address them will be key to the team’s success.
“As Ferrari team principal, what I think will be important is to be able to understand one’s weaknesses and deal with them quickly. The team’s reaction will be the key element.
“We can’t be sure we have a competitive car right from the start, because you never know what can happen when there is such a major rule change,” he added.
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Meanwhile, Formula 1 CEO and former Ferrari team principal Stefano Domenicali also suggested that the field might not be particularly close together.
“It is clear that in a season characterized by the new regulation and the budget cap there could be performance differences between the cars that are greater than what the public can expect,” he said in an interview with the Italian edition of Motorsport.com.
“However, I am sure that, thanks to the limitations introduced by the new regulations, in case of great advantages of some teams the gap will be closed very quickly.”
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