Scuderia Ferrari has admitted that its best chance of scoring a win this Formula 1 season may have beem missed after the Monaco Grand Prix. The Italian side proved to be very competitive on the streets of Monte Carlo, as Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc were able to put the Maranello team on top of the standings from the first practice sessions.
On Saturday Charles Leclerc took pole position, but unfortunately was involved in a crash in the final moments of qualifying, as Carlos Sainz was not able to complete his final Q3 lap and therefore had to settle for fourth place on the grid. Eventually Charles Leclerc had to retire before the race start as a result of a driveshaft failure, which opened the path for Max Verstappen to win, as Carlos Sainz took advantage of Valtteri Bottas’ pitstop issue to score finish in P2 and score his first podium for the Maranello team.
Scuderia Ferrari has previously battled McLaren for ‘best of the rest’ honours this season, behind Mercedes and Red Bull, and has not taken victory since the Singapore Grand Prix in September two years ago.
“I think yes there will be circuits, [with] low-speed corners, that we may be competitive, but it is not a given. I think on our side instead of thinking which circuits we will be competitive we are already focused on Baku, the next one, then focused on the following [events] There is still room of exploiting better the car, we have shown if we prepare better the race weekend we can exploit the weekend.” – Scuderia Ferrari Team Principal Mattia Binotto explained.
On whether the Italian side could again be in front-running contention, Carlos Sainz suggested to “just look at the characteristics of the Monaco circuit and look at the ones close to this.
“You will not find many, and even those circuits you are thinking [about], the same as me, [it] doesn’t mean we will be fighting for pole or the podium. Mercedes and Red Bull, I believe, they still have an advantage on us and it will be very tricky to be finding ourselves fighting for the pole or win. That’s why this weekend is also a bit of a tough one to swallow as you don’t know when the next chance will come. But we need to take pride at the steps forwards and how competitive the car has been this weekend. It is not easy to be quick around Monaco, and the fact me and Charles were so quick, it is down to the good performance of the team and how everything has been working this weekend.” – the Spanish driver concluded.
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