Binotto on testing so far. He is happy with progres with the PU and the SF21. I don’t think Ferrari can match RB or Merc but third place in 2021 must be the target.
Obviously we know how the engine is running on the dyno," said Binotto in Bahrain.
"When you fit it on the car what you may have a look at on track is the speed and eventually the relative speed to the others.
"When we were here last year in Bahrain for the race and for qualifying we’ve been very slow here on the straights – we didn’t enter into Q3 and we were very distant from pole.
"Now if I look at the first days I think at least on the straights the speed is alright. It doesn’t seem to be such a disadvantage as it was last year."
But the Scuderia boss also pointed to optimized aerodynamics on its new SF21 that have led to progress overall.
"We know it’s not only power, it’s the drag of the car as well – as we often said last year – but let me say that both of them contributed in improving our speed on the straights and today we feel it is not anymore a disadvantage."
So far in pre-season testing, Ferrari hasn't delivered any headline lap times, but Binotto nevertheless underscored the "smooth" sessions enjoyed by the team in Bahrain.
"We knew that with only three days it would be very busy and very intense – it has been very busy and intense," he said. "I think so far it has run smoothly.
"The main priority was certainly to understand the car behaviour, mapping in all the conditions, and that is where we focused our energy. I think so far we collected a lot of data."
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