Ferrari Team Principal, Mattia Binotto, blamed the budget restrictions for the lack of upgrades from his team. The Scuderia started the season with high hopes because of its fantastic performance.
Once at the top of the table Ferrari was quickly caught by its opponents
However, rivals Red Bull, and eventually Mercedes, managed to close on and overtake Ferrari on race pace. The main reason for that is the approach each team has towards its research and development segment.
Some like to introduce a lot of incremental upgrades. Actually, this is Adrian Newey’s known formula. On the other hand, Ferrari was expected to introduce only a few bigger upgrades down the line.
Unfortunately, the “Prancing Horse” didn’t manage to execute its plans to the fullest. Their latest update was a minor change on the floor for the Japanese Grand Prix, intended to make the F1-75 more suitable for the Suzuka track.
“So simply we were at the cap and had no more opportunity of developing the car. So we simply stayed where we were” is what Binotto told the media after the Brazilian Grand Prix.
The budget cap is meant to bring the grid closer together
The budget cap has been hardest on teams like Ferrari, which relied on pumping millions of dollars into their F1 team yearly. In 2021 however, Formula 1 introduced a $145 million limit, which dropped to $140 million in 2022. From 2023 to 2025 it will go further down to $135 million.
“We didn’t compromise next year’s car development, but certainly we decided to stop the current one,” said Binotto. This is good news for Ferrari fans, but it may cost the Scuderia some sweet revenue if Mercedes manage to overtake them for second place in the championship.
