Ferrari boss assesses qualifying in Russia and explains how the SF90 has improved in recent weeks. Mattia Binotto assesses the qualifying session in Russia.

At the Russian Grand Prix qualifying session, Scuderia Ferrari Monegasque driver Charles Leclerc claimed his fourth pole position in a row, becoming the first driver of the Maranello team to do so since Michael Schumacher in 2001.

Ferrari overall, and Charles Leclerc in particular, are displaying tremendous pace on the straights, as Mattia Binotto says the Monegasque still has more to come as he is still learning: “It surprised me how fast he was, at first. He is very, very fast,” the team boss said of his initial thoughts of Leclerc. – “That is something that is important for the team, counting on a driver who is so fast. He is learning very fast, how to manage his tyres, how to manage his distance. Seb qualified third, which might actually be better than second when it comes to tomorrow’s start, even if it would have been nice to have locked out the front row.”

The Prancing Horse have won three races in a row since the summer break, with their new power unit leaving Mercedes and Red Bull trailing in behind due to its pace. Mattia Binotto insists the main goal of the 2019 car’s development was speed on the straights.

“That’s certainly an advantage we’ve got” he admitted – “I think we developed our car to be fast on the straights. We said that since the very start of the season. The SF90 has improved and we have accelerated our development to have more drag and aero downforce. Also, thanks to the new package, we now lose out less in the corners. The overall balance is positive.” – the Ferrari boss added.

When asked about the positive atmosphere within the team currently, Mattia Binotto explained that confidence is high as the team feel they can contend every GP: “The team is certainly very motivated to do well at each single race. I think it is great for us to come to every single race to battle for the victory,” he said – “Anything we do this season will be beneficial to the next one, having stable rules. It is a matter of learning the car, learning the package, learning the tyres.” – he concluded.