Is this just the calm before the storm? Between the Chinese and Azerbaijan Grand Prix Ferrari team principal Mattia Binotto and his two drivers met for an appointment with fuel supplier Shell in Maranello. For the press, a full show of harmony and unity was given.
The demonstration of unity is important because Binotto had to intervene three times with a team order already. Here is a quick summary: In Australia, Leclerc wasn’t allowed to overtake Vettel. In Bahrain Leclerc defied his orders not to attack Vettel in the following two rounds and in China Vettel was sent past Leclerc.
Credit: @Vetteleclerc
Ross Brawn, who was a pillar of success during the Schumacher era, defends Binotto: “At the moment, Mattia is handling the situation well. Binotto is forced to tackle a situation that is definitely new to Ferrari, namely two drivers who fight at a very high level. On the one hand with the talented, young Leclerc, on the other hand with the valuable resource four times world champion Vettel, who proved to be pressure-resistant in the past.”
The two-time world champion Mika Hakkinen sees it differently: “Charles Leclerc had a better start into the season than his Ferrari teammate Sebastian Vettel and should have been left in third place to hunt Bottas. Instead, he was instructed to slow down and let Vettel pass – it seemed like a mistake. If you compete against a strong team like Mercedes, then games are useless. Ferrari has to finally concentrate on itself. It does not matter if Leclerc or Vettel wins if you want to win against Mercedes. I think Charles had every right to be upset.”
His advice: “Vettel and Leclerc have the potential to challenge Mercedes at every GP weekend – but for that, the drivers need the support their team, some flexibility and full concentration. Forget the topic of “team order!” The focus must be on how to win a race.”
*This article was first published in German at autobild.de/motorsport (ABMS).
