F1 | Ferrari, Binotto on the Vettel-Leclerc hierarchy: "Our drivers will be free to fight"

There were various topics discussed yesterday by Mattia Binotto, Ferrari team principal, in the meeting he had with the media during the lunch break of the eighth and final day of collective pre-season testing at Montmeló. Among which the one regarding the hierarchy of the Sebastian Vettel-Charles Leclerc pair on the track was also analysed.

Although Binotto underlined that the four-time world champion will retain the status of first driver, the same Italian-Swiss engineer also stated that the two Cavallino standard-bearers will be free to battle on the track until the key moments of the season arrive.

"I think the fact of being free to fight is also good for Ferrari. When you clarify your intentions from the beginning, at least you don't make mistakes when you have big or controversial situations. They will both be free to fight. I need both of them to go faster and faster, giving their all. To date Sebastian is the one with the most experience, he has been with us for many years, he is a four-time world champion and he is our champion”, said the Maranello team principal

Binotto, speaking subsequently about Leclerc, then added: “Charles is a good driver, he is certainly very fast, I think these days in Barcelona he has concentrated on understanding the car, working with the team, getting to know the engineers. I don't think there was a real clash between our drivers on the track, for us it's important to understand the car. They set similar times. We knew that Charles is a good and fast driver. I don't think he can represent a surprise, it's certainly not the Barcelona tests that confirm our choice. There was no doubt about it, but only the season will tell us more".