Not only power unit: Ferrari also got the setup wrong in Mexico City GP

Not only power unit: Ferrari also got the setup wrong in Mexico City GP. Ferrari also got the setup wrong in Mexico.

Scuderia Ferrari has always been able to keep up with the fastest cars in the field this season, at least in qualifying. But in the Mexico City Grand Prix, Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc had to line up in fifth and seventh place at the start. In the race, which was held at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez, things didn’t really progress either. The red F1-75 cars were never able to challenge Red Bull and Mercedes for a podium finish. At the end of the Mexican Grand Prix, the winner Max Verstappen was almost a minute away – with the same tyre strategy.

“We just didn’t feel comfortable on this track,” Mattia Binotto explained apologized after the race. “We had to make compromises with the power unit. We couldn’t capitalize on our full potential here.” Apparently the Maranello engineers feared problems with the turbos due to the thin air. That’s why the power was turned down.

In order not to lose too much time on the straights, the drivers also had to accept limitations regarding the setup for the 2022 Formula 1 Mexican Grand Prix. An annoying understeer and a lot of unrest about the curbs just couldn’t be driven out of the F1-75: “The driving behavior wasn’t particularly great. The balance wasn’t right. The car just didn’t turn. We now have to find out the exact explanation for this situation.” – Mattia Binotto added.

The Ferrari team principal admitted that the Maranello engineers were caught flat-footed. By the time they noticed how poorly the car was handling, it was already too late: “We didn’t realize it in the first practice session. The Pirelli tire test in the second practice session certainly didn’t help either. The last time we were this far off was in Spa. We now have to draw the right conclusions and find our old strength again in the last two races..” – Scuderia Ferrari team principal Mattia Binotto concluded.