Binotto: "Melbourne is not an easy track to find the balance between the slow and fast corners. We focused on protecting the rear tyres first and realised already on Friday that with the mediums the front left tyre starts to suffer from graining. We worked on that."
Binotto: "Charles also did a good job with tyre management."
Charles: "Ferrari has given me a wonderful car. It's a dream to drive. We had no problem with graining and were able to use them optimally from the first to the last lap."
Charles: "We have eliminated our weaknesses, which we still had in 2020 and 2021, step by step. I have a car that no longer forces me to do special things to get more speed out of it now."
Charles is also not afraid of the development battle with Red Bull:
"I trust the people who built this car. They are the same people who will develop it further."
#AMuS Melbourne brought out the qualities of the F1-75. It is fast regardless of the asphalt temperature and tyre compound, over one lap and race distance, they are reliable and easy on the tyres.
Charles: "If it continues in this style, we can think about the championship."
Charles doesn‘t want to think of Imola yet.
Charles: "We have to look at Imola as a normal race and not get distracted."
A little summary from the #AMuS episode after Melbourne:
• RB hopes the Imola upgrade is giving them a similar step forward like the one during the Bahrain test [back then the upgrade fixed their porpoising issue completely, Mercedes still wondering how that was possible]
• Meanwhile Ferrari thinks there is more potential in the base car before bringing a big upgrade [similar to Alpine, who also made a step forward by simply understanding their car]
• Binotto believes that Imola is the wrong track to bring a big upgrade due to the sprint race.
• Honda is currently checking Max's power unit after the DNF in Melbourne. It could be a double disaster for Red Bull if the PU is also damaged.
#Corriere In Maranello, they have a well-defined plan for upgrades. They tested a new diffuser in Australia to improve aerodynamic efficiency. It could already be used in Imola or later in Barcelona.
#Corriere The issue with the bouncing / porpoising is considered serious at Ferrari and the next interventions [upgrades] will focus on the floor area to limit it, starting from Imola.
. @Charles_Leclerc on the development fight : "From how we have prepared and from how we are working in Maranello, I am absolutely not afraid of competition in the coming months. Experience has taught us that we must remain calm in difficult moments. It will be a tight fight."
Summary of the latest #AMuS episode after Bahrain:
• full praise for Charles [Schmidt said he drove like a champion]
• Ferrari is the team that understand its car the best (they seem to have the best overall package at the moment, good downforce level + speed)
• Ferrari has the best PU now (it could also be that Shell did a massive job with the E10 fuel)
• AMuS heard from sources at the Mercedes customer teams that the Mercedes PU is struggling, but maybe those teams think that because it‘s not superior anymore & is on equal terms.
• Helmut Marko told AMuS that they got a top aerodynamic engineer from Mercedes after they lost some engineers to Aston Martin. Mercedes plays it down by saying it was just a junior aerodynamic engineer but AMuS believes there is more to it.
. @GiulyDuchessa reports interesting things regarding Ferrari (a thread):
• Ferrari feels the new PU is a big step forward
• New ICE has a completely different use of the combustion mixture (talks of an innovative oil management) + use of new composite materials inside the PU
• The E10 fuel is considered to cost 80hp in the adapted 2021 PU version.
(A source close to Honda said that it is "rather enviable if Ferrari had managed to contain the deficit to just 20hp, as Binotto hinted in previous interviews")
• Ferrari, with the support of a new exclusive supplier, has developed ultra-lightweight parts (PU). A very interesting objective is the significant weight reduction of the power unit.
Here is a little thread with comments from the current
F1 grid about Michael [comments were made over the years] ❤️
Mick: "My father is my idol. I have the highest respect for what he achieved. He had to work hard for his wins and titles. Nothing was given to him. That impresses me. The power and energy he showed, the concentration, always being 100% on the job."
#AMuS There are many meetings about the future engines in F1 [2025], but not much progress is achieved. It is not even clear yet whether the new engines will have four or six cylinders. There are two sides: Mercedes and Renault represent one, Ferrari and Red Bull the other..
#AMuS Mercedes is in favour of retaining the V6 engine. They say it's due to cost reasons. Every new construction costs more money. They would also like to keep the MGU-H as a technology, but would be ready for a compromise in that area.
Budkowski: "If we have CO2-neutral fuel, we don't need a V4. The V6 is already there.
Renault does not like to have an electric drive on the front axle. "That means massive modifications to the car, more weight and more costs."