To win the championship, Ferrari will need to finish the season hard and fast.
MARANELLO, Italy—Over the last five seasons, the Scuderia Ferrari team has won many F1 races up to the midpoint of the season. Then, German driver Sebastian Vettel would lose out to Mercedes pilot Lewis Hamilton. That outcome brought a huge question to the fore: When will the Italian team build a car to challenge the Silver Arrows?
Ferrari’s SF90 at Friday’s launch (photo, NDTV Sport)
The answer might have been revealed on Friday when Ferrari launched its contender–the new SF 90, which was unveiled at the team’s headquarters in Maranello, Italy.
The car might be new, but suddenly, Vettel might have to contend with more than Hamilton. It’s a new teammate, Charles Leclerc from Monaco, a former student at the Ferrari Academy. LeClerc replaces Kimi Raikkonen.
“I’m extremely excited to start this new adventure,” said Leclerc. “It’s a dream since childhood. I’ve always been looking at the red cars, hoping to be one day in this car, so it’s a very emotional day for me.”
As for Vettel, he can already feel that things have changed. “Everybody is different, so there is a change,” he said. “The atmosphere is good, and I think that things are moving in the right way. We look forward to starting again and I think we need to be patient. It’s not just one person that is running the team, and there are a lot of people learning to build these two cars. So for me, it is an honor to drive one of them.”
Mattia Binotto addressed the media (photo, YouTube)
Many fans are also sensing that Vettel might have a fight on his hands with Leclerc. But according to new team manager, Mattia Binotto, the team will favor the four-time world champion right from the start.
“I think it’s normal, especially early in the season, that if there are particular situations our priority will be Sebastian,” Binotto said at the launch of the team’s 2019 car. “He is the guide with which we aim for the championship,” Binotto continued. “But there’s no prejudice–the absolute priority is for Ferrari to win.”
And ‘win’ is something Vettel would like to do. To do that, he’ll not only have to face Hamilton and Leclerc–but possibly Max Verstappen of Red Bull Racing-Honda–for an opportunity to take his fifth title.
