Ferrari make "impossible" concession to Max Verstappen

Ferrari

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Ferrari make "impossible" concession to Verstappen

Verstappen was dominant at Monza

Ian Parkes & Sam Hall

Wednesday 14 September 2022 10:20

Ferrari team principal Mattia Binotto has described Max Verstappen as "impossible to beat" at the Italian Grand Prix.

Red Bull driver Verstappen scored his 11th win of the season to establish a 116-point lead in the drivers' standings, with a chance of clinching the title in Singapore next time out.

Although Charles Leclerc started his Ferrari from pole position with Verstappen seventh, the Monégasque had no answer to his rival's pace.

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An early virtual safety car interruption allowed Ferrari to attempt an alternate two-stop strategy but this was to no avail.

Asked about the difficulty of trying to beat a faster car, Binotto said: “It’s not difficult, it’s impossible to beat the fastest car.

"You may only make it wrong with strategy and lose the race if you have a fast car with [a bad] strategy. So I think this day he was fast and whatever the strategy, he would have won."

Binotto backs strategy call

Ferrari has come under fire for its poor strategy decisions this year but its Monza gamble was not one that can be criticised.

Backing the call, Binotto added: "By pitting and moving onto a two-stop with Charles, it still was not the wrong decision because you never know what may happen later in the race.

"You never know how tyre degradation will be for Max on the longer stint and if you look back at the car behind, George [Russell], the gap that Charles had at the end of the race was big and comfortable.

“Overall, it was not a risk but a gamble that would have turned into a positive choice.”