Ferrari chairman John Elkann says the Italian outfit's return to the winner's circle this season is in part rooted in the Scuderia's culture which has changed from "one of guilt to one of accountability".
After four races, Ferrari currently leads both the Constructors' and the Drivers' Championships, with Charles Leclerc sitting atop the latter thanks to his wins in the Bahrain and Australian GPs.
Ferrari's return to prominence has come on the back of Formula 1's significant regulation overhaul for which the Scuderia diligently prepared last season, its departments in Maranello working tirelessly to design its 2022 new-generation car, the F1-75.
Asked at Imola recently how Ferrari had succeeded in turning around its fortunes after several years of lack of success, Elkann pointed to changes undertaken on the engineering front but also to culture and mentality changes at Maranello.
Ferrari chairman John Elkann and company CEO Benedetto Vigna
"We focused in 2020 on the F1-75 and we entrusted Mattia and the team to work, despite all the pressures of those years, on this year’s car," said Elkann, speaking to F1 TV.
"We changed also our culture, from one of guilt to one of accountability, to one of individuals to one of team, creating a cohesive environment.
"But more importantly, high ambition, with high humility."
Elkann underscored Ferrari's talented duo of drivers comprised of Leclerc and teammate Carlos Sainz. But the Stellantis chairman emphasized once again the strong united front that the Scuderia has put together.
“We have two great drivers on their own merits, but more importantly they’re a team,” he said.
"And that’s what is important for Ferrari, and something I’m very proud of personally is to see how Ferrari as a team, from our drivers to our engineers and mechanics, have worked well together.
"Our performance at the pit stops, 48% under three seconds in 2020, going up to 78% in 2021 and this year we are at 89% and that tells it."
So far, Ferrari and Red Bull have competed in a league of their own this season.
Ahead of next week's Miami Grand Prix, Leclerc holds a 27-point advantage over Max Verstappen in the Drivers' standings, while the Scuderia leads the bulls by 11 points in the Constructors' championship.
But Elkann is cautious not to put the cart before the prancing horse, knowing all too well that past performances are no guarantee of future success.
“We said we’d be competitive, which we are," said the 46-year-old executive. "From being competitive to winning is like going to the moon or going to Mars, extremely difficult
“We well know that championships are won or lost at the last race, at the last lap, and this with variables we control and many we don’t, which is why Formula 1 is such an exciting sport and we are, as Ferrari, so excited about this challenge."
Assessing Formula 1 as whole and the merits of the sport's new-generation cars, Elkann gave Grand Prix racing's new era a big thumbs up.
"I think it’s great, I think it’s wonderful to see how it’s become fun, that the competitiveness has increased, that a lot of talent is coming to Formula 1," he said.
"And I credit Chase Carey and Stefano Domenicali for the great work they’ve achieved in giving a future to Formula 1."
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