50 F1 RACING DECEMBER 2019
was when he would unleash everything.
It worked. He shot from an average grid slot of
6.3 throughthe first six races to 4.0 over the next
six. “What is perhaps mostexciting about Leclerc
is not what he is capable of now, though,” said
Binotto before the summer break. “But where
he goesfrom here.”
As it turned out,Lecler c wouldget stronger.
Qualifying wentfrom good to great,as Leclerc
took four poles ina row from Spa to Sochi. But
he startedto mat ch that with stronger racepace
too. Vettel held an advantage intyre management
during the firsthalfof the season, butdefeat to
Vettel in Hungary afterqualifying ahead helped
Leclerc finallyrealise the e xtent of his weakness in
this area. A lot ofhomeworkfollowed. In Belgium
and Italy, Leclerc defeated LewisHamilton–
arguably the outright bestin race management
on the cur rent grid – invictory fights.
It would havebeen a dream scenar iofor Ferrari
if it did not come at thecost of some intra-team
harmony. AsLeclerc was establishing himselfasTHE ‘ALPHA’ BET
Ferrari and MattiaBinotto aretaking the path less
travelled. It’s bumpy, long and difficultto navigate
because there is no real mapto follow.Taking two
aggressive, selfishand ruthless winners and taming
themto be compliantteam players is borderline
unchartedterritory.
Team ordersare partof F1.Whether you agree
with such race manipulation or not, theyare part of
the fabric of ateamsport andserve a purpose. But
Binotto is taking it one step further: tryingto craft an
arrangement whereby two alpha drivers compete on
equalterms,but for the good ofFerrari –under its
control and preparedto sacrifice their own interests
for theteam. “You can always decideto let them
race,” Binotto recently admitted. “That would be the
easier solution.”
Binotto’s task with SebastianVettel andCharles
Leclerc isnot same asToto Wolff oncehad at
Mercedes, or Christian Horner atRed Bull.Wolff
knows the pain of the alpha bet.The scars of the
Lewis Hamilton-Nico Rosberg rivalry might have
healed on the surface but there’s a soreness that
still runs underneath. It might even be why Hamilton
is forever at painsto pointouthow great his
relationshipis withValtteri Bottas, who will never be
number twoby name but isexactly that in practice.
At Red Bull, MaxVerstappen has moved to the next
level with Daniel Ricciardo gone. Max had it easy
against Pierre Gasly, and is not being problematically
challengedby Alex Albon either.
Binotto seesFerrari’s alpha bet as a gamblethat
can unlock akey strength as it bidsto finallytopple
Mercedes: the strongest driver line-up among the
leadingteams and the compliance of those drivers
to worktogetherto obliterate theopposition,
regardless of which one of themfinishes first.
“What’s importantfor themis to be animals,
because that’s thebestwayto be really aggressive
and fastin the race weekend,” saysBinotto ofVettel
andLeclerc. Andkey for Ferrari, accordingto Binotto,
is to manage the potentially destructive effects of
that animalistictendency: “It’simportantfor the
teamto be aware of that; tryto prevent it.”
Some believe Binotto’s targetto be optimistic
at best,very naive at worst.If Ferrarigets itwrong
the outcome will be defeat and that is something
Ferrari cannot afford.After the summer breakLeclerc’s
work on his race pace paid off, with
back-to-back wins – at Spa and a
dream victory at Monza (below)PICTURES:JERRYANDRE;MARK SUTTON50 F1 RACING DECEMBER 2019
was when he would unleash everything.
It worked. He shot from an average grid slot of
6.3 throughthe first six races to 4.0 over the next
six. “What is perhaps mostexciting about Leclerc
is not what he is capable of now, though,” said
Binotto before the summer break. “But where
he goesfrom here.”
As it turned out,Lecler c wouldget stronger.
Qualifying wentfrom good to great,as Leclerc
took four poles ina row from Spa to Sochi. But
he startedto mat ch that with stronger racepace
too. Vettel held an advantage intyre management
during the firsthalfof the season, butdefeat to
Vettel in Hungary afterqualifying ahead helped
Leclerc finallyrealise the e xtent of his weakness in
this area. A lot ofhomeworkfollowed. In Belgium
and Italy, Leclerc defeated LewisHamilton–
arguably the outright bestin race management
on the cur rent grid – invictory fights.
It would havebeen a dream scenar iofor Ferrari
if it did not come at thecost of some intra-team
harmony. AsLeclerc was establishing himselfasTHE ‘ALPHA’ BET
Ferrari and MattiaBinotto aretaking the path less
travelled. It’s bumpy, long and difficultto navigate
because there is no real mapto follow.Taking two
aggressive, selfishand ruthless winners and taming
themto be compliantteam players is borderline
unchartedterritory.
Team ordersare partof F1.Whether you agree
with such race manipulation or not, theyare part of
the fabric of ateamsport andserve a purpose. But
Binotto is taking it one step further: tryingto craft an
arrangement whereby two alpha drivers compete on
equalterms,but for the good ofFerrari –under its
control and preparedto sacrifice their own interests
for theteam. “You can always decideto let them
race,” Binotto recently admitted. “That would be the
easier solution.”
Binotto’s task with SebastianVettel andCharles
Leclerc isnot same asToto Wolff oncehad at
Mercedes, or Christian Horner atRed Bull.Wolff
knows the pain of the alpha bet.The scars of the
Lewis Hamilton-Nico Rosberg rivalry might have
healed on the surface but there’s a soreness that
still runs underneath. It might even be why Hamilton
is forever at painsto pointouthow great his
relationshipis withValtteri Bottas, who will never be
number twoby name but isexactly that in practice.
At Red Bull, MaxVerstappen has moved to the next
level with Daniel Ricciardo gone. Max had it easy
against Pierre Gasly, and is not being problematically
challengedby Alex Albon either.
Binotto seesFerrari’s alpha bet as a gamblethat
can unlock akey strength as it bidsto finallytopple
Mercedes: the strongest driver line-up among the
leadingteams and the compliance of those drivers
to worktogetherto obliterate theopposition,
regardless of which one of themfinishes first.
“What’s importantfor themis to be animals,
because that’s thebestwayto be really aggressive
and fastin the race weekend,” saysBinotto ofVettel
andLeclerc. Andkey for Ferrari, accordingto Binotto,
is to manage the potentially destructive effects of
that animalistictendency: “It’simportantfor the
teamto be aware of that; tryto prevent it.”
Some believe Binotto’s targetto be optimistic
at best,very naive at worst.If Ferrarigets itwrong
the outcome will be defeat and that is something
Ferrari cannot afford.After the summer breakLeclerc’s
work on his race pace paid off, with
back-to-back wins – at Spa and a
dream victory at Monza (below)PICTURES
:JERR
YANDRE
;MARK SUTTON