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Berger: Ferrari could overload Binotto with responsibility

Berger: Ferrari could overload Binotto with responsibility

20-04-2019 11:00
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Bobby Vincent

According to former Ferrari driver Gerhard Berger, the Italian team cannot afford to overload the responsibility on its team boss Mattia Binotto.

Binotto, who used to be Ferrari's technical director, replaced Maurizio Arrivabene as the team boss at the beginning of 2019. The Scuderia side looked to have got off to a great start - with its car being the dominant bit of machinery in the pre-season testing in Barcelona.

However, we're now three races in and Mercedes have been dominant. For the first time in its history, they've completed three successive one-two finishes at the start of a campaign.

Ferrari have been in the headlines; perhaps for the wrong reasons, though. Charles Leclerc has been the victim of team orders in every race so far during this 2019 season.

Asked for his opinion on Binotto, the former Ferrari man has sympathy for the team boss: "The usual thing with Ferrari is, someone getting the responsibility, and getting all responsibility.

"Because when you look at Red Bull, you have the genius, Adrian Newey. You have a capable (team boss) Christian Horner. Then you have the shark, Helmut Marko.

"Then you look to Mercedes: Toto (Wolff), very capable. You have the genius on the engine side, Andy Cowell. And you have Niki (Lauda), unfortunately not here now (recovering from illness).

"At Ferrari, you see (only) Binotto. I don't know if this is enough. I think Binotto is a great technician. It's just (crucial) he doesn't use too much time for maybe political discussion or whatever, and then running out of time for the main (thing he is good at)."