2017 Italian GP: Maurizio Arrivabene reflects on “difficult” home event. Ferrari Team Principal admits the track did not suit the characteristics of the SF70H.

Scuderia Ferrari Team Principal Maurizio Arrivabene was left to lament a “difficult” home event for the operation as rival Mercedes executed a 1-2 finish at the 2017 Italian Grand Prix. The Maranello team arrived at Monza hoping to end a seven-year home drought, but struggled in wet conditions on Saturday, during the qualifying session, which meant that Kimi Raikkonen and Sebastian Vettel lined up from only the third row of the grid.

Sebastian Vettel made swift progress to wind up third, albeit over half a minute behind the dominant the two Mercedes drivers, while Kimi Raikkonen was a lowly fifth, having claimed he almost spun a few times during the Monza race. Given the final results at the 2017 Italian Grand Prix, Scuderia Ferrari lost further ground in the Constructors’ Championship, and now sits 62 points behind Mercedes, while German driver Sebastian Vettel is no longer the leader in the Formula 1 Driver Standings, ahead of the Singapore Grand Prix, which is scheduled to take place in two weeks time:

“It has been a difficult weekend at a track that definitely did not suit the technical characteristics of the SF70H.” – Scuderia Ferrari Team Principal Maurizio Arrivabene explained, as reported by the Italian media at the end of the event – “The great crowd of our fans here at Monza supported us all the way and the entire team thanks them for that. After a far from ideal qualifying in the wet, Sebastian managed to get the better of the drivers directly ahead of him on the grid and thus make it to the podium. As for Kimi, he had a more difficult time due to the balance on his car being inconsistent. Despite the fact that everyone in the team did their utmost, we cannot be satisfied with this result. We will tackle the next race in Singapore with our feet on the ground and with our usual determination.” – Maurizio Arrivabene concluded.

Scuderia Ferrari has claimed four wins in the first part of the 2017 Formula One championship, while Mercedes has now won eight rounds, but the Maranello team is confident in a strong reply on the Marina Bay Street Circuit.