Scuderia Ferrari Team Principal Mattia Binotto took part in Saturday’s press conference ahead of the third practice session and qualifying for the 2022 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix. Of course the main focus of the media was less on the track action and more on the missile attack which took place just 20 kilometres away from the circuit, during one of the free practice sessions on Friday.
Mattia Binotto and McLaren team Princopal Andreas Seidl said that they had reassurances from the local authorities that it is safe to race, so leaving would have been the wrong choice. Seidl said that nobody from his team approached him of wanting to leave, while Mattia Binotto also confirmed that no one from the Ferrari team has left and no one has asked to leave. Mario Isola said that nobody from Pirelli has left as well.
Mattia Binotto was asked if the drivers are 100% happy with the choice and admitted that Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz are not 100% happy but they understand it and it‘s a good thing that they voiced their opinion about it. That‘s a positive thing. Reflecting on what unfolded, Mattia Binotto said: “After that long discussion that it was important to have, they [the drivers] simply understood and supported that it was important to stay and remain and continue the weekend and drive here in Saudi. By leaving the country, it would not have been simply the right choice and there were no right reasons to leave here, to leave the country after all the assurances we had got. So I think they met, they had their own concerns and raised them but all together we tried to get the assurances and got the right explanation as well.”
The Scuderia Ferrari boss also said that Charles Leclerc is relaxed this season and wanted to make a step forward and improve compared to last year. He did a great weekend in Bahrain. He added that the victory in the Bahrain Grand Prix last week was a great boost for the Maranello team, confirming he brought the trophy to Maranello and every employee took a picture with it.
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