The reason for Ferrari’s failure at Imola is often attributed to the car’s handling characteristics. However, I believe that a combination of factors led to the disastrous result. The first was due much more than just poor performance–it was an entire team effort going wrong and getting worse as the race went on.
The “imola f1 crash” is a disaster that happened in the 1993 Italian Grand Prix. Ferrari’s dream of winning at Imola turned into a nightmare after their driver, Roland Ratzenberger, crashed during qualifying and died later on in the race.
IMOLA (Italy) – Ferrari may be hesitant to acknowledge it, but the pressure increases when the team competes in its home country. In Italy, winning expectations are usually much increased, and the cost of blunders is greatly increased.
It’s a level of pressure that no other F1 team has to deal with. Individual drivers may feel more pressure while racing in front of their home audience, but no team carries the dreams of a country quite like Ferrari.
It’s impossible to attribute the weight of expectation to the errors made by Ferrari drivers Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz during the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix weekend in Imola, but it does make the missed opportunity all the more galling for a team that has always operated on a heady mix of emotion and passion.
“Certainly, expectations were quite high here in Italy, and we tried to calm them down,” team manager Mattia Binotto remarked on Sunday evening, after Ferrari finished Imola with just 20 points out of a possible 59. “We did all we could inside the squad to lessen the burden and ensure that we were focused and focussed during the weekend.”
Ferrari has only won in Italy once in the last 12 years, due to Leclerc’s victory in the Italian Grand Prix at Monza in 2019, and Imola felt like the ideal place to reward its devoted fans with another home victory. The team seemed untouchable at the previous race in Australia, as Leclerc took no chances on his route to his most comfortable win in Formula One, but things were different in Imola.
Sainz’s weekend started horribly as he spun in qualifying and severely damaged his vehicle, preventing him from competing in the pole position shootout. He later claimed that the accident was not caused by pressure and that he was simply experimenting with different lines through the Rivazza corners, but the error put him on the back foot for the rest of the weekend before he was eliminated from Sunday’s race in a first-corner collision with Daniel Ricciardo.
At Ferrari’s home race, Carlos Sainz had a terrible weekend. Getty Images/Dan Mullan
During Saturday’s short race, it was evident that the Imola circuit layout and varied weather circumstances favored Ferrari’s opponents Red Bull. On Saturday, Leclerc performed well to hold off Max Verstappen in the 21-lap race, but Red Bull had the advantage across the whole grand prix distance.
As a consequence, when Leclerc slid to third behind both Red Bulls at the start of Sunday’s grand prix, Ferrari had to be creative with its race plan. With 15 circuits to go, the team pitted him from third position in the hopes of giving him a better opportunity of challenging the two Red Bulls ahead. After Leclerc suffered with front tyre troubles in the sprint race, it seemed like Ferrari was making the stop as a precaution, but team president Mattia Binotto stated it was just an effort to mix up the race and put pressure on Red Bull.
He explained, “No, we didn’t run out of front tyres.” “I believe Sergio Perez’s speed was equivalent to or slightly better than Charles’ at that point in the race, so we decided there was no longer any option for us to attack and overtake on those tyres.”
“So we pitted in the hopes that they [Red Bull] would pit as well, putting us both on fresh tyres and resetting the race with 15 circuits to go. Because Charles was so close to Sergio when he tried to attack and before he made the mistake, it worked out quite well.”
At the Variante Alta, Leclerc made “the error” of taking too much kerb and spinning his Ferrari into the barriers. As his wheels scraped over the track surface, the front wing collided with the outer wall, causing damage to all four of his tyres. Leclerc pitted for fresh tyres and repairs, dropping him to ninth place before rallying back to sixth place at the finish.
After the race, Leclerc commented, “It’s a tremendous pity.” “Whatever occurred before the spin is how it is, you know, it’s part of racing, but I feel the spin should not have happened today.”
“I mean, P3 was the most I could do; we couldn’t keep up any longer.” I was greedy, and I paid the price by losing seven possible points compared to my previous third place finish.
“It’s a pity because those seven points will be crucial towards the conclusion of the tournament. This is not something that should happen again.”
At Ferrari’s home race, Carlos Sainz had a terrible weekend. Getty Images/Dan Mullan
There was some debate after the race about Ferrari striving too hard to get a victory that wasn’t on the cards, but Binotto made no apologies for his aggressive attitude. When Leclerc made the mistake, he was only 0.5 seconds behind Perez, and if he had gotten a good run out of the Variante Alta by attacking the kerbs, he could have stayed close enough to Perez through the two Rivazza corners to attempt an overtake on the pit straight.
“I don’t believe anybody will ever regret asking a driver to push,” Binotto remarked. “I believe it is part of our profession; it is part of our duty to push ourselves to the utmost, but accidents can happen. These automobiles, in my opinion, are far more rigid, and even a little error may cost you a lot of money. But there are no regrets. I believe we made the correct decision, and that’s all there is to it.” Binotto insisted that the strain of the moment in front of Ferrari’s home audience had not played a role in Leclerc’s mistake.
“I don’t believe pressure was a role for the drivers when they were driving since they were trying to do their best.” Obviously, we’re battling for the best places and are aware that we’re winning the championships, but I noticed Charles seemed really calm over the radio throughout the races.
“He was extremely cool, and I believe the way he was handling it indicated that he was not feeling the pressure, so I believe it was a legitimate error that can happen at any time — a tiny mistake that lost him some spots, and I’m quite sure he is aware of that, and that’s good enough.”
The championship race is still in Leclerc’s hands.
After wasting a podium finish at Imola, a devastated Charles Leclerc goes back to the paddock. Getty Images/Dan Istitene/Formula 1/Formula 1
One of Leclerc’s most striking qualities is his willingness to communicate about his faults. While Ferrari has battled for performance over the previous two years, he has made a number of little — and often expensive — mistakes, which were a major influence in teammate Sainz overtaking him in the championship standings last year. On Sunday evening, he was already planning how he would alter his strategy to prevent a repeat of the occurrence in a future race.
“It was one of those blunders where it was more about the mental attitude you had at that specific time of the race,” Leclerc said. “I’ve always been good at recognizing the specific sensation I was having at any one time throughout the race and understanding how to remedy it.”
“It was another error, but I’ll learn from it and not repeat it.”
“And I got fortunate with the error since I only lost seven points compared to what I might have scored. However, it’s seven points that might be crucial at the end of the season, and every point matters when you’re chasing the championship. So, no, it’s not going to happen again.”
Despite the error, Leclerc still leads the standings by 27 points, and there are no assurances that Red Bull’s advantage in Imola will be maintained when F1 returns to Miami for the first time.
After scoring maximum points at Imola, Leclerc’s title opponent Verstappen commented, “It’s always tough to discern who has the quickest vehicle.” “Every tune is unique. When compared to Melbourne, we were far from the fastest.
“At the end of the day, it’s all about the minutiae,” he says. “You have to constantly make sure you have a proper balance in the automobile.” You may have the quickest vehicle in the world, but if you don’t have good balance, it won’t function, and you’ll have to take care of your tyres, which are really important in these modern automobiles.
“And, once again, Miami will be a huge unknown. For some people, it will most likely be hit or miss. Of course, we hope to do well, but you never know at this point.” Verstappen, on the other hand, would have grabbed the championship lead this weekend if mechanical troubles hadn’t cost him two second-place results in the first three races. It serves as a reminder of how expensive errors, whether made by the organization or the driver, may be during the season.
“Honestly, with Red Bull, it’s either they’re stronger one week or we’re stronger the next, and it’s been like this from the beginning of the season,” Leclerc remarked. “We were stronger in Bahrain, we were stronger in Australia, and they were stronger in the other two.”
“I still think we’re there, more or less, and it’ll be a race to see who comes out on top.” So I don’t believe there are any substantial changes yet, although they were a little stronger this weekend.
“All points matter, and I’ve lost seven points today, compared to the 15 we would have gotten if we finished third. Every point is critical, and I will use what I’ve learned in the future. It’s the way it is today; I’ve analyzed the facts and am confident in my actions. I’m going to move on.”
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