'Binotto vacates Ferrari technical director role'

Ferrari team principal Mattia Binotto has stepped away from his previous role of technical director, according to reports in Italy, having combined the jobs since replacing Maurizio Arrivabene.

Binotto had retained oversight of the technical direction of the Scuderia alongside a team of senior engineers, although the added workload had been presented as a possible reason for the team's poor first half of the 2019 campaign.

Having started the season as title favourites, Ferrari are yet to win a race and now face a stiff battle from Red Bull to hold onto second in the championship, with Max Verstappen holding off Sebastian Vettel and Charles Leclerc for third spot in the drivers' standings.

The Italian branch of motorsport.com has claimed that Binotto has responded by stepping away from the technical side of the team and focusing solely on his tasks as team principal.

Binotto's decision may also be influenced by the impending return of Simone Resta, the former chief designer at Maranello who will leave Alfa Romeo at the end of the month, having served as technical director for the Hinwil squad.

Motorsport.com claims that Resta's main focus will be on the 2021 car, with a sweeping change of regulations possibly opening the door for Ferrari to get the better of Mercedes after a long stint of Silver Arrow domination, which shows no sign of stopping in 2019.

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