Why has Ferrari always been under 'a lot of pressure' in F1? Former world champion has his say

F1 Grand Prix of Italy
Ferrari fans show their support with a banner during the F1 Grand Prix of Italy at Autodromo Nazionale Monza (Photo by Mark Thompson/Getty Images)

Ferrari is the oldest team in F1 to still race. They started in the 1950 season and are the most successful team to ever race in the championship. They have won the constructor's championship a record 16 times and the driver's championship 15 times.

In the 2022 season, the Scuderia have brought one of their best cars in recent times. The F1-75 is one of the fastest pieces of machinery on the grid, winning pole in 10 races out of 16. But its one-lap performance hasn't translated into many race wins. They've only won four races and are 139 points behind Red Bull in the constructor's championship.

In the 2022 F1 Italian GP, the Italian team took pole position but lost the race in the end. Max Verstappen won the race, starting from seventh on the grid. The race ended under Safety Car conditions after Daniel Ricciardo retired with his car stranded trackside.

Former two-time world champion Mika Hakkinen said on the Unibet Sports Blog:

"Ferrari has always had a lot of pressure, and it is something unique to them. Of course, at McLaren we felt the pressure of competing to win, trying our best, not being satisfied if we were not winning, but Ferrari has always had this additional pressure of being a kind of national team.”

Ferrari is one of two Italian teams racing in the championship, the other being AlphaTauri, which is operated by Red Bull. The Prancing Horse has a rich history in racing and many people in Italy consider it a national team. This has built upon the pressure faced by the team to win, often leading to mistakes on the track. The Italian GP loss was partly unlucky since a final racing lap could've seen Charles Leclerc fight Max Verstappen of Red Bull for the win.


Ferrari will need to perform in Singapore to stay in the championship race

Singapore is next on the F1 calendar. The last time F1 raced in the city was in 2019, with Sebastian Vettel winning the race in his Ferrari. It was the last of Vettel's 53 race wins in F1. The Scuderia are currently 139 points behind Red Bull in the constructors' championship and will need to perform in the next few races to stay in the championship race. Singapore has always been a strong track for the Italian giants, so they will be hoping for a good result.

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Edited by Nicolaas Ackermann