Written by Tanishka Vashee, edited by Morgan Holiday
Disclaimer: I am not out here trying to jinx anything, I want this just as bad as the rest of you do! With that out of the way, this is just my opinion, how 2022 goes really depends on the team’s performance, preparation and planning.
2020 was a year to forget if you were rooting for Ferrari, it was somewhat expected that there would be a difference in performance from 2019 owing to the controversy around the engine.
I’ll be honest, all through 2020 I cursed, cried and screamed at the TV as if Mattia Binotto could actually hear and do something about it. For 2021, I wasn’t expecting much improvement in terms of pace and I found the driver pairing odd, pretty much everyone saw Carlos’ move to Ferrari as self sabotage.
Boy we couldn’t have been more wrong, Team principal Mattia Binotto set a very clear objective ahead of 2021 – to finish third in the constructors’ championship. With just two more rounds to go, I would say they are well on their way to bag the last step on the podium.
The improvement they made in 2021 definitely deserves more praise, Leclerc was able to get two poles and a podium, while Sainz brought the team three podiums.
Everyone is anticipating the new regulations to make Formula 1 much more exciting, so with the budget cap and technical regulations we are on the verge of seeing some really competitive racing.
Red Bull and Mercedes are currently spending a good amount of their time and resources on this year’s fight for the title, which has to translate to spending less time on next year’s development. Whereas Ferrari had a clear goal at the start of the year and said they were ready for the new switch, almost 90% done around the month of April itself!
To put things into perspective, the prancing horses are more focused on next year than the current battle for P3. I would say it’s definitely going to be the drivers that decide who finishes where rather than the car, as Charles Lcelerc said in an interview, mistakes will decide the winner in the fight.
McLaren and Ferrari have both brought upgrades, however Ferrari’s upgrades are to do with the Power Unit and will stay relevant to next year. On the other hand McLaren relies on Mercedes for their engine and hence upgrades in that field are not up to them. McLaren did bring in some good upgrades in terms of Aerodynamics but they will be pretty much useless next year.
I think it’s time we bring attention to the man leading it all, Mattia Binotto. It’s fair to say a majority of us were dubious about his move from Technical lead to being the Team Principal, and the 2020 season earned him a lot of bad publicity.
Putting all of that aside, I believe the judgement was unfair, I’m calling myself out. He’s been with the Scuderia since 1995, working on their engine and bringing them the glory days of the early 2000’s – He knows what he is doing. Believe in the Masterplan.
A desperate desire to win, a car that is shaping up to recover all its lost pace, the man with a plan and the best best driver pairing on the grid: That right there looks like a winning combination.