It is being increasingly reported in Italy that Ferrari team principal Mattia Binotto has handed in his resignation to president John Elkann, with an official announcement expected by the Italians at any moment.
Binotto’s imminent departure isn’t considered as a real shock, given how many issues the Maranello-based side have faced through their own doing in 2022.
Putting the team’s woeful power unit reliability to the side, Ferrari have experienced a quite shocking number of strategic errors when running in strong positions.
Charles Leclerc in particular saw his season ridiculed by strategic errors, with the Monegasque having lost a potential win at Monaco, Hungary and Silverstone through his side’s incompetence.
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It wasn’t until the season finale that the Scuderia actually got their strategy absolutely perfect, with the side having successfully tricked Red Bull into pitting Sergio Pérez for a second time at the Yas Marina Circuit.
Ferrari’s strategic brilliance in Abu Dhabi ultimately sealed Leclerc second in the Drivers’ Championship, marking a personal best result for the 24-year-old.
Nevertheless, the side have created more issues for themselves throughout the year than they really needed to, something which saw Binotto face the spotlight several times.
The Italian was asked multiple times during 2022 if Ferrari needed to change their strategic personnel, something he always denied was necessary.
It appears now that it’s Binotto himself who Ferrari feel needs to be switched, something ex-F1 driver Karun Chandhok disagrees with.
Chandhok, who is now a pundit for Sky Sports, believes Ferrari need “wider restructuring”, with sacking Binotto not “the answer”.
“Will be a shame to see Mattia Binotto go,” Chandhok wrote on Twitter.
“Always found him to be interesting & willing to chat.
“He tried to create a no-fear, no-blame culture & as a part of that, he didn’t make the changes he should have.
“Changing just the TP [team principal] isn’t the answer – they need wider re-structuring.
“I wonder if Mattia needs to be shuffled sideways into a technical leadership role – let’s not forget they have designed and produced a very fast car this year.
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“Creating a better operational and development team in parallel with the concept and design is key.”
There is no doubt that Ferrari enjoyed a considerably better year than they have done in the last few, where they fell into the midst of the midfield.
Ferrari are certainly back as a frontrunning side; the big question now, though, is can they make the most of it?