Both Charles and Carlos looking pretty quick in FP.
Might have the 3rd quickest car this weekend...
Charles losing the position at the restart is painful. A podium and a few more points in the CC lost. But otherwise a positive weekend and both drivers kept their noses clean. Imola should've suited Ferrari but the way McLaren roared back on Saturday means you really can't go into any race thinking Ferrari are midfield favorites. McLaren especially with that Mercedes engine and low drag car. It's almost a reverse of Mercedes vs Ferrari 2019 but McLaren have a way better car relatively speakingJPower wrote: ↑18 Apr 2021, 17:24If you're Ferrari you have to be happy with the result. They might've gone a little conservative putting both cars on medium after the restart but things worked out.
The important takeway for me is both cars showed good pace and Carlos was able to recover from his qualifying issue. Like I said, he's got the pace during the race, just has to figure things out on Saturday.
Portimao should be another track Ferrari will do well on.
I don't think anyone came into this season thinking the fight for P3 will be easy. It'll make for good TV for sure.wowgr8 wrote: ↑18 Apr 2021, 17:55Charles losing the position at the restart is painful. A podium and a few more points in the CC lost. But otherwise a positive weekend and both drivers kept their noses clean. Imola should've suited Ferrari but the way McLaren roared back on Saturday means you really can't go into any race thinking Ferrari are midfield favorites. McLaren especially with that Mercedes engine and low drag car. It's almost a reverse of Mercedes vs Ferrari 2019 but McLaren have a way better car relatively speakingJPower wrote: ↑18 Apr 2021, 17:24If you're Ferrari you have to be happy with the result. They might've gone a little conservative putting both cars on medium after the restart but things worked out.
The important takeway for me is both cars showed good pace and Carlos was able to recover from his qualifying issue. Like I said, he's got the pace during the race, just has to figure things out on Saturday.
Portimao should be another track Ferrari will do well on.
Macs have a way better engine i think. In the wets, Ferrari were out there, just slightly behind mercedes i think. Also, leclerc caught up to norris and got into drs range early enough, even with norris on better tyres. But i guess that Ferrari engine just isnt any match for the top 2 right now. They were too easy on the straights smhwowgr8 wrote: ↑18 Apr 2021, 17:55Charles losing the position at the restart is painful. A podium and a few more points in the CC lost. But otherwise a positive weekend and both drivers kept their noses clean. Imola should've suited Ferrari but the way McLaren roared back on Saturday means you really can't go into any race thinking Ferrari are midfield favorites. McLaren especially with that Mercedes engine and low drag car. It's almost a reverse of Mercedes vs Ferrari 2019 but McLaren have a way better car relatively speakingJPower wrote: ↑18 Apr 2021, 17:24If you're Ferrari you have to be happy with the result. They might've gone a little conservative putting both cars on medium after the restart but things worked out.
The important takeway for me is both cars showed good pace and Carlos was able to recover from his qualifying issue. Like I said, he's got the pace during the race, just has to figure things out on Saturday.
Portimao should be another track Ferrari will do well on.
Correct, they put on more DF for the race also keeping in mind the high percentage of the chance of rain - this is what both Binotto and Leclerc told Sky F1 Italy. So if it wasn't for the very unfortunate red flag, it would have been the perfect strategy. One cannot say that McLaren didn't follow the same idea but you can't say the Ferrari PU is inferior to Merc just because Leclerc couldn't pass Lando on the straights.
Yup spot on. It's really incredible how Leclerc couldn't make an impression on Norris after the restart, he was in DRS range for so long. The Merc PU stretched its legs this weekend after some people wrote it off at BahrainEmag wrote: ↑18 Apr 2021, 21:29I think it is safe to assume that there is still a deficit to the Mercedes PU, however small it might be. But it should also be noted that McLaren had a quick car in the straight line last year as well. It's a trait of their car that has seemingly been carried over this season as well. The fact that even Lewis (same engine) with a superior car and tire performance took 4 or so laps to get by Norris should be taken as proof of that.
He struggles a lot because he was unable to put some pressure on Norris even with better drivers.wowgr8 wrote: ↑18 Apr 2021, 21:53Yup spot on. It's really incredible how Leclerc couldn't make an impression on Norris after the restart, he was in DRS range for so long. The Merc PU stretched its legs this weekend after some people wrote it off at BahrainEmag wrote: ↑18 Apr 2021, 21:29I think it is safe to assume that there is still a deficit to the Mercedes PU, however small it might be. But it should also be noted that McLaren had a quick car in the straight line last year as well. It's a trait of their car that has seemingly been carried over this season as well. The fact that even Lewis (same engine) with a superior car and tire performance took 4 or so laps to get by Norris should be taken as proof of that.
Leclerc "We struggle on the straights and today we paid the price"