"Ferrari still have work to do on reliability"- Charles Leclerc 'cannot afford' to have engine failures like Carlos Sainz if he wishes to close the gap to Max Verstappen, feels two-time F1 champion

Ferrari still has some work to do when it comes to reliability and challenging for the title this season. This is the view of Mika Hakkinen after the Italian squad's performance at the 2022 F1 Austrian GP.

Ferrari was able to secure its second win in a row in the race last weekend. The Scuderia had a car with much better tire usage and as a result, Max Verstappen could not keep up with Charles Leclerc.

At the same time, though, Carlos Sainz suffered another DNF while trying to overtake Verstappen for P2 in the race. It was once again a scenario of the team getting caught off guard with a power unit issue this season, something that has hampered their championship campaign severely this season.

In his weekly blog for Unibet, the two-time F1 world champion wrote:

“Carlos’s engine failure shows that Ferrari still have work to do on reliability and I am sure they must know where the problems lie. Charles cannot afford to have those kinds of failures if he is to close the gap to Max. In fact, he needs Max to have a non-finish if the points gap in the World Championship is to really close down.”

The other "Ferrari" driver that caught the eye of the Finnish world champion was the Ferrari Driver Academy prodigy, Mick Schumacher. Hakkinen was happy to see the young German making a mark with his second consecutive points finish, writing:

“I was really happy to see Mick Schumacher drive another strong race for Haas and finish 6th, two places ahead of his experienced team mate Kevin Magnussen. Mick gets a lot of attention because of his father’s reputation, and that brings pressure with it. However he is a very calm, mature young guy – still only 23 – and he is clearly gaining confidence in himself and his car.”

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Haas' progress this season coincides with the Ferrari driver's improvement

Mika Hakkinen also touched on how Mick Schumacher, a member of the Ferrari Driver Academy, has been making waves ever since Haas improved as a team.

Last season, with a car that was essentially a backmarker, the German did not have the opportunity to express himself. As the season has developed this year, Schumacher has also improved and shown what he can do.

Hakkinen wrote:

“Last season was his first in F1, a year to learn during which Haas did not have a competitive car. This year we can see that the team has made good progress with the new car and regulations, so the chance is there for Mick to really show his capability.”

The 2022 F1 Austrian GP was the second race in a row where Mick Schumacher was able to secure a points finish. The German driver is gaining confidence, which will in due time raise questions about his ceiling in F1.