Ferrari says disappointment with Miami result 'means progress'

Ferrari boss Mattia Binotto says the fact that the Italian outfit is no longer happy with a second and third place finish on race day is a clear sign of "progress".

In Miami, Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz offered the Scuderia its first front-row lockout since Mexico 2019.

But while poleman Leclerc upheld Ferrari's leadership in the opening stages of the race, the Monegasque was eventually overhauled by championship rival Max Verstappen who went on to conquer his third win of the season.

"Certainly when you are starting with two cars on the front row you are hoping for a better result, for a win," Binotto told F1 TV.

"We are disappointed no doubt, but being disappointed with second and third is great. It means the teams and the drivers, and everyone at Ferrari, are no longer happy with a second and third.

"I think that is progress."

Verstappen's authoritative win in Miami was another indication that Red Bull's RB18 now holds an edge over Ferrari's F1-TV, an advantage delivered in part by the multiple updates implemented by the Milton Keynes-based outfit on its 2022 car.

Ferrari has so far limited its upgrades as it sparingly manages its development program along with its mandatory $140 million budget cap.

Binotto believes that Red Bull's development phase and spending will tail off sooner than the Scuderia's own programme which could provide the latter with an advantage later in the season.

• Read also: Leclerc says early struggle on medium tyre 'made race difficult'

"It's true that Red Bull have improved their car since the very start of the season, and they introduced upgrades," explained the Swiss engineer.

"If I look at the last two races, maybe they have got a couple of tenths per lap faster to us.

"Now, I have no doubt that in order to keep the pace, we need to develop ourselves and introduce upgrades.

"I hope, because there is as well a budget cap, that at some stage Red Bull will stop development: otherwise I will not understand how they can do that."

As predicted, Binotto confirmed that Ferrari will bring an upgrade package in its crates next week in Barcelona, with the hope that its efficiency will help the Scuderia catch-up with its Red Bull rival.

"In the next races it will be at least our turn to try to develop as much as we can on the car, by introducing upgrades," he said.

"I think it's not a surprise that we may have a package in Barcelona which will be important for us.

"As usual I hope that the package we are introducing is working as expected, and in that case can be good, in order to try to catch up the current gap we've got compared to the Red Bull."

As Ferrari kickstarts its development in earnest in Spain, Binotto made clear that Ferrari's cautious upgrade schedule is in large part determined by the team's financial constraints.

"We do not have the money to spend for upgrades at each single race," he said. "I think it is as simple as that.

"Not because of an inability, but because of the budget cap. So we need somehow to try to focus development on when we believe it's the right moment and the right spending."

Keep up to date with all the F1 news via Facebook and Twitter