Ferrari Chairman Elkann Backs Team Principal Binotto but Insists Mistakes Must End

Scuderia Ferrari chairman John Elkann says he is still backing the current Team Principal Mattia Binotto, but he says the team need to remove the mistakes that have blighted their 2022 FIA Formula 1 World Championship season.

Ferrari started the current season with two wins in the opening three races but have seen only two further victories since, while Oracle Red Bull Racing have taken a march on them with victories in each of the remaining eleven races.

Charles Leclerc remains Max Verstappen’s closest rival in the Drivers’ Championship with only seven races remaining, although he is one hundred and nine points behind the Dutchman.

The season has seen a number of reliability problems for both Leclerc and Carlos Sainz Jr., while driver errors and strategical mistakes have seen Ferrari’s season fall apart at the seems and drop away from the front in both championships.

“We have great faith in Mattia Binotto and appreciate everything he and all our engineers have done, but there is no doubt that the work in Maranello, in the garage, on the pit wall and at the wheel needs to improve,” Elkann is quoted as saying to Italian publication Gazzetta dello Sport by Motorsport.com.

“We must continue to make progress and that goes for the mechanics, the engineers, the drivers and obviously, the entire management team, including the Team Principal.

“We have seen that there are still too many mistakes when it comes to reliability, driving and strategy.

“Putting our trust in Binotto and his team was the right decision and it has paid off. Thanks to them we are competitive and winning again. But I am not satisfied because I think we can always do better.”

Elkann believes Ferrari still have what it takes to achieve its target of winning World Championships again before the end of the current engine cycle, and he feels the team have possibly the strongest driver pairing on the grid.

“Our first goal was to be competitive,” said Elkann.  “If you are not, then you have nowhere to go, whereas you can always work on reliability.

“That’s why I believe that before 2026 Ferrari will once again win the Constructors’ and Drivers’ titles, with Charles Leclerc in pole position.

“We are lucky to have two great drivers, probably the strongest pairing in Formula 1.”