Are Ferrari still capable of lamenting a Championship challenge
Can Ferrari continue to reduce the deficit to their rivals and lament a sustainable Championship challenge for the remaining 11 races?
The Austrian Grand Prix signalled the midpoint of the highly anticipated Formula 1 season and it is currently advantage Red Bull Racing with title defender Max Verstappen leading the charge.
Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc managed to get back to winning ways at the Austrian Grand Prix after displaying a dominant effort against the outpaced Red Bull of Max Verstappen at their home race. It has come at a cost that has left many tifosi sceptical of whether their team can realistically win either of the 2022 Formula 1 Constructors’ and Drivers’ championship, possibly even both.
Coming into the 2022 season with the sculpted F1-75 finished in Rosso Opaco, Ferrari instilled a sense of genuine hope that they could get back to winning ways. Kimi Räikkönen remains the last Drivers’ Champion to win in red after a momentous 2007 season while the Scuderia last won a Constructors’ Championship in 2008 when Felipe Massa narrowly lost out on the drivers’ title by 1 point.
The stark reminder that the team previously enjoyed season success 14 years ago was justification enough for the Maranello based outfit to attempt leapfrogging the regulation changes and return to winning ways at the top tier of motorsport – akin to that of when Michael Schumacher dominated for the team from the early 2000s.
Ferrari engineer Laurent Mekies made headlines during June of 2021 stating that the most successful team to contend the motorsport would cease development of their SF21 car and focus on the regulation changes of the current era. A few other teams battling further down the field also did this while Red Bull Racing and Mercedes-AMG were scrapping it out right up until the season finale in Abu Dhabi.
The past two race weekends have had a driver donned in blood red perched atop the highest step of the podium, one a piece for both drivers and the first victory for Spaniard Carlos Sainz. While competing for victories is part and parcel of a Championship battle, so is finishing the race. General reliability has been the root cause of a gaping points deficit for the F1-75 when competing against the RB18.
The 2022 power unit is divided into several different categories, drivers are essentially allowed three engines per season. More on how powertrain penalties here. Charles Leclerc has already gone through his power units in his Championship challenge and took a grid penalty at the Canadian Grand Prix two rounds ago. Speculation cites the Monegasque driver will take his fifth engine of the season ahead of the Belgian Grand Prix at Spa-Francorchamps – this would mean another grid penalty but considering the circuit is ideal for overtaking, this is the most logical choice for damage control.
According to Italian publication La Gazzetta dello Sport, Sainz could take an additional engine this weekend in France and start at the back of the grid too. This plays comfortably into the hands of Red Bull Racing who have enjoyed more meritorious reliability, despite a torrid start to the season.
From the opening round, the F1-75 and RB18 have been exchanging blow-for-blow when it comes to performance but Ferrai have only recently managed to slash the top speed advantage of their rivals. With each teams’ machinery being equally matched, it will be difficult for Ferrari to chip away at the herculanean 50+ point gap to the Red Bull Racing team.
Considering there are several power circuits remaining on the calendar, we don’t expect Ferrari to back down from the Championship challenge but it is going to be an uphill task if reliability continues plaguing the team as can be anticipated. With Red Bull suffering poor reliability in the opening round of the season, it is difficult to believe how the tables have turned in their favour.
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