Former Ferrari team principal Mattia Binotto makes an appearance at Monza ahead of the 2023 F1 Italian GP

As Formula 1 heads to Monza for the 2023 edition of the Italian Grand Prix, the home team, Ferrari's former team principal, Mattia Binotto, who is currently not working under any of the F1 teams, was spotted at the paddock.

The former team principal became a part of Scuderia Ferrari in 1995, making his way to the engine department. Being an engineer, his inputs were precious to the team.

He witnessed them break records with Michael Schumacher winning multiple world championships in the early 2000s and then rising to win once more in 2007.

He replaced Maurizio Arrivabene in 2019 after being promoted as the team principal and held the position for three seasons. Under him, the team came close to winning the world championship in 2019 and 2022, but ultimately lost out.

A lot of times, he was blamed for the functioning of the team; including the strategic blunders and the reliability of the cars.

It was speculated by many that Mattia Binotto should not be the team principal and should rather work in the engine department because of his excellent knowledge and skills.

This could have been useful for the team especially because of the reliability issues the engines faced. However, after the 2022 season, Binotto announced his resignation from the team, ending a bond that lasted for almost two decades.

This is not the first time he was seen at the Paddock in 2023, he also made an appearance in Silverstone earlier.

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Scuderia Ferrari to run special livery in Monza this weekend

The Italian Grand Prix is home to the heritage of racing and the impeccable craft of the Italian automobile industry.

Ferrari, being the oldest and the most successful team on the Formula 1 grid honors their home race almost every season by changing their cars' liveries and bringing out the true colours of the team; yellow and red.

The team earlier revealed the special livery they will be running for their home race this weekend, which, in inclusion to the classic hot red will have a tint of yellow. This has also been included in the drivers' suits.

Other than the change in the livery, their drivers Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz would also be hoping for a definitive improvement in performance. The last time the team won here was back in 2019 (Leclerc) and since then, they have missed out on it.

Ferrari has been really weak this season and sits fourth in the standings. Although they are trying to improve with every race under the eyes of their new team principal Frederic Vasseur (former principal of Alfa Romeo), they are still far from a victory in 2023.