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Ferrari team principal Mattia Binotto has admitted that it has not been an easy journey for the Scuderia in the last few years.
The Scuderia last won a World Championship in 2008 and have since seen Red Bull and Mercedes pull ahead for more than a decade. Ferrari tried to stay in the hunt for titles but endured a drastic fall from grace towards the end of 2019, resulting in a shambolic 2020 season.
The 2021 season was the first step in getting the team back on track towards competitiveness before Ferrari produced the fastest package on the grid this year. They are, however, yet to return to the top of the pile and chances appear slim in the face of Red Bull's massive lead in both championship races this season.
During an interview with Autosport, Binotto was asked if there have been difficult times since he took over at the start of 2019. The Italian said:
“Each single day! I think certainly it has not been an easy journey from 2019, when I was put in place as team principal, to today. We have been through 2020, a very difficult one, and then 2021. But even 2022, because we are fighting for the best, sometimes there are races where we are not obtaining what is the potential of the car. So it’s not an easy one. But what I may say is that I’m happy in the role. I’m happy because I know that I’ve got a great team. The team is united. It’s great to see them working together.”
Ferrari boss feels the FIA needs to monitor the F1 budget cap
Ferrari team principal Mattia Binotto believes the FIA must ensure that the budget cap for all F1 teams is monitored and implemented properly.
The FIA put a hard cap of $140 million at the start of the 2022 season, which all teams must operate under to keep the competition on an even keel. Following the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the subsequent rise in costs owing to the rising inflation the conflict created, the governing authorities decided to grant an allowance in addition to this amount.
During the 2022 F1 Austrian GP weekend, the authorities agreed to "permitting indexation at a limited rate of 3.1%, which takes into account the original 3% inflation threshold already set out in the regulations.
Mattia Binotto believes there are a few gray areas in the financial regulations that could be exploited if the FIA does not monitor them properly. In an extensive interview with motorsport.com's Italian variant, the Ferrari boss said:
“The budget cap needs to be monitored and monitored. I fully trust the FIA, but the financial regulation is completely new. If we observe the technical or sporting regulations, they have been in force for many years but there are still areas that need to be monitored. The financial regulation is completely new, both for the teams and the FIA, and it will take time to get to know, interpret, clarify, supervise and monitor it.’’
Ferrari are currently second in the World Constructors' Championship standings and trail Red Bull by 97 points with nine races remaining this season.
