Binotto: Ferrari 'not too concerned' by a resurgent Mercedes

Ferrari boss Mattia Binotto claims his team is not too concerned by Mercedes' return to form in recent races. The Italian boss claims his team's dropping gap to Mercedes is due to the continued development of their challenger as opposed to the Scuderia's focus on the 2023 F1 season.

Binotto claims the Maranello-based squad has shifted their focus entirely to the 2023 F1 season, where they will try and challenge Max Verstappen and Red Bull yet again. As a result, Mercedes have almost caught them in the constructors' championship fight for P2 as the German team continuously updates their W13. Ferrari lead the Silver Arrows by only 40 points in the constructors' championship after a poor showing from the Italian team at the 2022 F1 Mexican GP.

Binotto told the media:

"Mercedes [are] coming back, as they have developed the car [more] than we did. We know ourselves that we stopped quite early [with] the development of the car, focusing on 2023. So somehow, I'm not too concerned by the rate of development, because I know when we stopped developing [our own car]."

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Ferrari boss claims Mercedes makes strategic errors too

Ferrari team principal Mattia Binotto pointed fingers at Mercedes, claiming that his team isn't the only one making mistakes. The Scuderia has been under considerable scrutiny for their poor strategic choices in 2022, causing them to lose significant points in both championships.

Earlier, Mercedes' choice to put Lewis Hamilton on the hard compound tires towards the end of the 2022 F1 Mexican GP might have cost them a rare chance of winning a race in 2022. Binotto pointed out that the Silver Arrows too have made strategic errors whilst competing with Red Bull in 2022. He told the media:

"In Hungary, we have been criticised and it's normally when we are doing things which are not completely right. Mercedes maybe have lost the last race as well, by not choosing the right tyres in Austin. So, it's not only down to us somehow to make different choices or making mistakes."

It must be noted, however, that Mercedes have made considerably fewer mistakes compared to Ferrari in their fight against Red Bull in 2022. It can also be argued that the German team has an upwards performance graph this year, while the Red team has continuously been on the decline since the midpoint of the season. With the twisty, high-downforce Interlagos circuit up next, the Scuderia can hope to pip both their rivals next weekend.