Ferrari's warning shot to Red Bull: 'Performance potential to be extracted'

Mattia Binotto has confirmed Ferrari will not take major upgrades to the Miami Grand Prix. The race in America is next on the schedule, but Ferrari say they are holding back upgrades until the Spanish Grand Prix two weeks later.

Major development race

With the new rules and regulations in Formula 1, the development rate in 2022 was always going to be high. At the start of the season, it looked as if Ferrari were ahead. However, for the race in Imola, Red Bull had an upgraded floor package and came away with a one-two for Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez. Whilst Charles Leclerc wasn't far away and could've taken more points without a mistake, it seems as if Red Bull are developing quicker.

With this speed, the pressure grows on the Ferrari factory to produce some upgrades to combat this. Mattia Binotto reported to AS that these upgrades won't be arriving in Miami. "We won't have the main upgrade in America, but we will have some new parts," Ferrari team boss Binotto said.

"We're confident in the level we'll be running because it's very efficient [with the budget cap]. We will adapt our car in terms of aerodynamic load and we will continue working on the porpoising. It is visible and there is also performance potential to be extracted there," Binotto added.

Improvements required for Ferrari

As it stands, Ferrari are very strong in the medium-slow speed corners. The data suggests they have far better traction and downforce in these areas allowing Leclerc and Sainz to get on the power quicker for corner exits. Red Bull are beating Ferrari when it comes to straight-line speed. This is part of the reason why Red Bull managed to win races in Saudi Arabia and Imola.

The straight-line speed is an area Ferrari need to find more performance. Down the straights, their car is often seen bouncing along as it battles with porpoising. The same medium reports that Ferrari will bring updates to the Spanish Grand Prix as they pick and choose the most important areas to battle with 145 million euro budget cap.