Nicola Larini, former Ferrari driver, spoke to Autosprint to comment on the main events of the 2023 Formula 1 championship. From Red Bull and Max Verstappen’s dominance to the situation at Scuderia Ferrari and Mercedes, from the race in Spain to the DRS topic, here are some of his most important thoughts.
Nicola Larini’s comprehensive statements:
“Max never makes mistakes, unlike his teammate Sergio Perez. I believe that the title fight between the two has never been in question, even though the Mexican has shown that he can dominate as he did in Jeddah,” said the Camaiore-born former driver to the microphones of the well-known motorsport magazine.
He then added, “Max Verstappen has all the tools to beat, perhaps, every record. Max started very young and immediately started winning. If he continues to have the best car, he will be able to set new records, but I believe that even in a different car from Red Bull, the Dutchman would still achieve excellent results. The level of the current drivers is high, but in terms of performance, Max is ahead of everyone.”
On Stroll’s performance in Spain:
“I was very impressed by Lance’s performance because despite Alonso catching up with him in the end, he still couldn’t overtake him. Fernando is clearly superior to Lance, but the Canadian was ahead of the Spaniard in both qualifying and the race on a real track. And he was driving an Aston Martin that is far from irresistible.”
On the current situation at Ferrari:
“Is Ferrari losing ground or standing still? It’s hard to say, while in the case of Mercedes, the improvement seems quite clear. The Ferrari drivers were losing 6-7 tenths per lap compared to the Mercedes drivers when the latter got closer to them to make the overtakes, so it seems normal that resignation emerged within Ferrari. Hearing that the team is already working for 2024 is disheartening.”
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On the contact at the start between Lewis Hamilton and Lando Norris:
“It was a racing incident, although Norris could have been more cautious. At the start, it’s normal for a driver to brake a bit to avoid contact with the opponent in front, and if the driver behind is too close to the rear of the car, contact is highly likely to occur. It’s a shame because Norris started ahead and immediately found himself at the back of the pack.”
On Esteban Ocon’s defense against Fernando Alonso:
“Ocon’s maneuver was too aggressive, bringing Fernando inside the space designated for the pit lane exit. What would have happened if, at that moment, a car had been at the end of the pit lane? I expected a penalty for Ocon because it was a very borderline move.”
On the penalty given to Tsunoda:
“Considering that he forced Zhou off the track, I think it was inevitable, but I notice a lack of consistency in the decisions made by the stewards. Why do the youngest drivers in Formula 1 always make increasingly borderline moves? Because from junior formulas and karting, they all race with knives between their teeth from the first to the last lap, and sometimes they take astonishing risks. I think of the last race of the Italian F4 that took place at SPA, where a driver was excluded from the event for making an extremely dangerous maneuver. If action is not taken quickly, something very bad could happen.”
On Gunther Steiner‘s outburst after the penalty given to Hulkenberg in Monaco:
“He did very well. When you experience an injustice, it’s right to protest; otherwise, it means you have no character.”
On George Russell’s contract extension with Mercedes until 2025:
“George has shown that he has what it takes to become a champion. Russell has put Hamilton in difficulty on more than one occasion. Last year, Lewis, especially at the beginning, was dealing with a car that suffered from a lot of porpoising, and maybe he took fewer risks, while Russell, as a young and ambitious driver, pushed very hard. With a competitive car in his hands, George shows that he can be close to Lewis’ performance. As for the incident that happened between the two in Q2, it was definitely a misunderstanding because it would have been too risky to make malicious moves.”
On the DRS:
“It allows continuous overtaking, and initially, it could have been a good thing, but it ended up being exaggerated. The movable rear wing should be reviewed, perhaps by modifying the angle of incidence because currently, position changes have become too predictable. In Azerbaijan, the chasing driver gained hundreds of meters compared to the competitor ahead, and I found that excessive.”
