French racing driver Pierre Gasly believes that Scuderia Ferrari could be the team to watch in the 2021 Formula One season despite the fact that Mercedes will most likely finish “clearly on top”.
The Italian side was able to score only three podium finishes through Charles Leclerc and Sebastian Vettel during last season as Ferrari eventually finished sixth in the constructors’ championship.
AlphaTauri were just 24 points behind them, their season buoyed by a remarkable grand prix win for Pierre Gasly at the 2020 Italian Grand Prix.
However, testing ahead of 2021 has offered glimpses of a better future for Scuderia Ferrari following their worst season in four decades. Carlos Sainz recorded the third-fastest time last Sunday in Bahrain, while he and Charles Leclerc are each said to be happier with the handling of the car after problems with straight-line speed last year.
Pierre Gasly, who has spoken privately to Charles Leclerc about Ferrari’s progress, believes the team are keeping their cards close to their chest in terms of their progress during the off-season. He told Stats Perform News:
“I think Ferrari are kind of hiding and not showing too much. Compared to last year I think they are clearly better. I discussed it with [Charles] Leclerc after the test and we exchanged a couple of messages, talking but not too much, just trying to [laughing], have an idea! I think we are close to each other. I don’t know if they are ahead of us or if we are slightly ahead. But they have clearly made a step forward. I think McLaren seem to be a very strong opponent and competitor at the moment, especially with a Mercedes engine. They seem to have managed to put a strong package together. Then at the top, we will see what happens between Mercedes and Red Bull; it is very difficult to say and make any conclusion. Mercedes had a pretty difficult test, with some reliability issues, but we know how strong they are as a team so I wouldn’t be surprised to see them clearly on top.” – the French racing driver concluded.
The 2021 Formula 1 season will start in Bahrain on March 28.
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