Sebastian Vettel believes Ferrari has the pace to climb through the field in this afternoon's Belgian Grand Prix.
The four-time world champion will start from eighth after a disappointing qualifying session on Saturday, with team-mate Kimi Raikkonen 12th having stopped on track in Q2. While Mercedes-powered cars proved dominant over one lap, Vettel says Ferrari is more competitive than it appeared on Saturday.
"I think we have made impressive progress on our side," Vettel said. "I think our straight line speed is good and that is what makes me confident for the race because it is a place you can overtake so we should be in the right place.
"I think we are quicker than the cars in front, so we will see how it works out. Surely the target is to make progress for both of us. It was a shame to lose one car with Kimi right at the beginning of Q2 but for both of us the target is to recover."
Asked if the podium is still the target, Vettel replied: "Always.
"The last three days we have had surprisingly good weather, maybe [today] it could be different. Some rain is forecast, but even without that we should have good pace and anything can happen. There is some potential of a chaotic start, it is not that chaotic for us, it looks like Hungary, so we will try to make a move early on. We have the whole race and I think we will be able to recover."
Click here for a gallery of the biggest crashes at Spa-Francorchamps
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