"Finishing second will never be good enough for Ferrari"
F1 News
This was the season that Ferrari thought they could seriously push Mercedes all the way through to Abu Dhabi. But after Mercedes dominated the opening half of the F1 world championship, the Italians were left to think again. Team boss Mattia Binotto plans an "intense winter" and deems second place in the F1 world championship "never good enough".
Charles Leclerc and Sebastian Vettel started picking up race wins after the summer break. Binotto starts his final preview of the season by highlighting the fightback but also acknowledges the team need to aim higher.
"Of course finishing second will never be good enough for Ferrari and we are looking ahead to a very intense winter to keep building as a group. The aim is to come back stronger to be up to the challenges that await us. Of course, there were highs and lows: the first part of the season did not go the way we wanted, but I certainly value the way we all stood together, rolled up our sleeves and fought back," Binotto said.
"Particularly noteworthy was the way we reacted after the summer break, with three race wins in a row and a run of six consecutive poles positions, as well as our win in Monza, just days after the incredible celebration of the 90 years of the Scuderia, in Milan, in front of a huge crowd."
Leclerc is one race away from completing his first season at Ferrari. The 22-year-old has laid the foundations down and Binotto hopes to build on these through the 2020 F1 season.
"Abu Dhabi is the last race of what has been a long season for everyone. For us at Scuderia Ferrari, it was a year of new beginnings, with team members taking on new roles and Charles in his first year with us and our aim was to build the foundations for the future," he added.