2013 Belgium Grand Prix Team Preview: Ferrari need to regain lost ground

(L-R) Fernando Alonso and Felipe Massa of Ferrari attend the drivers parade before the German Grand Prix at the Nuerburgring on July 7, 2013 in Nuerburg, Germany. (Getty Images)

After a brief summer break, the second half of the 2013 F1 season is set to begin with the Belgian Grand Prix this Sunday.

Scuderia Ferrari saw their performances dip in the fag-end of the first half. Both the team and their top driver Fernando Alonso are third in their respective championship standings.

For the Italian team, the problem has been more about their car under-performing rather than their rivals out-performing them. Their 2013 car, the F138 has not lived up to the expectations so far, therefore, putting their championship campaign in jeopardy.

The dissatisfaction of their drivers came out in the public when Alonso spoke about his opinion about the car in an interview, inviting a harsh public rebuke from the Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo.

With so much disarray in the team, their performance was bound to be affected and that was pretty clear before the summer break.

Adding to the tension were the rumours that linked an unhappy Alonso to the about-to-be vacant seat in Red Bull, while Ferrari themselves were linked with the possible return of Kimi Raikkonen.

However, now that Red Bull have all but officially announce Daniel Ricciardo as Mark Webber’s replacement, this episode has come to an end on a happy note.

Ferrrai might have done some homework on their car during the summer break – although it was mandatory for the teams to shut down their respective factories for two weeks. It would be interesting to see how Ferrari reacts if the improvements (if any) are not enough, given that their archrivals Red Bull are clearly ahead of them.

Another area for concern for Ferrari is the underwhelming performances of Felipe Massa. The Brazilian has shown glimpses of his brilliance, but in bits and pieces. His inability to put up a good show has hampered the team’s challenge and people are starting to consider him as dead-weight in the team.

With Massa’s contract set to expire, it is very unlikely that Ferrari will renew it. This will add to his woes and there will be an enormous pressure on him to perform. Massa’s future in Formula One depends on whether he can shrug off his bad run of form and manage to produce a great race or crumble under pressure.

Massa won the Belgium GP in 2008 with Ferrari; he knows the track pretty well, but given his current form, it is unlikely that he will do it again. He needs to find form first before he can be a race contender. However, given his potential he cannot be totally ruled out.

Ferrari have a very good track record at the Spa-Francorchamps. With 12 race wins, the track has been a happy hunting ground for the Italian outfit. With another four victories at Zolder, they have won 16 times in Belgium. Ferrari, undoubtedly, will be looking to add to the tally. They need to start winning if they are to stay alive in the championship race.

They are definitely among the top contenders to win the race in Belgium, but to their dismay, they definitely are not the best team out on the track at the moment. They need excellent performances from their drivers, both in the qualifying and the race and an effective strategy from their think tank if they are to snatch a victory this Sunday. It’s not impossible, but very difficult, given the current circumstances.