After the qualifying session for the 2022 Hungarian GP at the Hungaroring racetrack in Mogyorod, Ferrari team principal Mattia Binotto was interviewed in front of the microphones of ‘Sky Sport F1’
Hungary marks the last stage before the summer break. With a long stop ahead (F1 will return on 26-28 August next for the Belgian GP) it was therefore right to take stock of the situation to understand what the Maranello team will be able to do in the second half of the 2022 Formula One season. Here are the most important comments and statements from the Ferrari boss on Saturday:
Nobody smiled in Ferrari after qualifying
“The drivers weren’t smiling at the end of qualifying, but if you look at the mechanics and engineers no one did”, said the team principal of the Maranello team. Second and third place are no longer enough for us and this is a good thing because it shows the strength and mentality of this team. If we weren’t smiling it was because we knew we could do more. We missed a pole, a front row and here in Hungary it is always important. But the race is a different story. I would not be satisfied with a second place and I would not be satisfied with a second and third place “.
Problems for Red Bull? It would been better for tomorrow
“Today’s qualifying shows that you should never take anything for granted”, he continued referring to the anomaly that occurred on the engine of Max Verstappen’s car in Q3. Problems can happen to them as well as to us. The difference is minimal. Today Max’s engine gave out with just two laps to go. Had it happened tomorrow it would have been even better. It’s all a matter of circumstances. We have to stay focused on ourselves. It is useless to think about others “.
Complicated race …
“It will be difficult to manage the start”, says Mattia Binotto looking at the Hungarian GP. “Whoever starts behind us will be aggressive. The Red Bull cars will want to come back and we have to try to get the best possible result. Russell? You can definitely expect a good race from Mercedes. They generally improve from Saturday to Sunday and the fact that they have obtained the pole says a lot. Congratulations to Russell and Mercedes. They will fight for the win and we will have to be perfect to overtake them as soon as possible “.
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Strategies, weakness and strength?
Even the decisions of the Ferrari pitwall have often been at the center of media attention, but Mattia Binotto, speaking to ‘Sky Sport F1’, defended them sharply: “It takes courage and recklessness to make decisions. In hindsight we are all capable of doing better than what is done in the excitement of the race. There are some races in which we really distinguished ourselves for strategy: I remember Austria, France where with courage we were the only team to bring to the race two sets of Medium tires. I think the team is very strong in race strategies, they have the right mentality. With hindsight we can all improve. If I would like to redo Monaco and Silverstone? Monaco yes. Not having won from the front row is a pity. Silverstone no. I’m sorry for how it ended, but I think our decisions were in fact the right ones. If we had pitted Charles and Hamilton had continued with hard tires that were only three laps old, I don’t know how it would have ended.”
Without the reliability problems we would now be nine wins to three
On the other hand, the aspect concerning reliability is delicate: “Monaco is a regret, but we have a lot of them this year. Above all because of reliability, but soon we will find the key. It’s a shame because without the problems we could be at nine wins today as compared to three for our rivals. Red Bull were lucky because when they lacked reliability we were winning, while we always had problems when we were in the lead. This makes the balance very different. Charles achieved little compared to the poles he took? Reliability has greatly affected this.”
