Ben Sulayem: 'Only a matter of time' before Ferrari wins championship

FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem believes that it's "only a matter of time" before Ferrari returns the F1 title to Maranello.

It's been 16 years since a Ferrari driver last won the F1 world championship, with that privilege last enjoyed by Kimi Raikkonen in 2007, while the Italian outfit itself clinched the Constructors' crown the following year in 2008.

Big hopes were placed on Sebastian Vettel when the four-time world champion moved from Red Bull to the Scuderia in 2015.

Alas, the German driver came up short against the mighty Mercedes squad and his archrival Lewis Hamilton during six seasons.

Last year, the Tifosi's hopes were revived once again by Charles Leclerc thanks to the Monegasque's strong start to his 2022 campaign. But missteps and mistakes eventually consumed the team's chances of remaining a title contender against Red Bull and Max Verstappen.

Unfortunately, the team's shortfall and sum of errors proved costly for Scuderia boss Mattia Binotto who has been replaced at the helm of the Scuderia by former Alfa Romeo-Sauber team boss Frederic Vasseur.

"The decision was made on the basis of performance," commented Ben Sulayem when asked in Saudi Arabia last week about Ferrari's prospects.

"When Ferrari won they had a lot of diversity, but it’s not about whether Italians are better than French or Germans. It’s about finding the right person."

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Only time will tell if Vasseur can accomplish what his predecessor failed to achieve. But the FIA president is convinced that the church bells in Maranello will be ringing at some point in the future.

"Even if all teams have the same engine and the same team boss, only one team can win at the end," he added.

"Whether they have the right ingredients, no one knows except Ferrari itself. But winning races and winning championships is not something new for Ferrari.

"It’s only a matter of time until they win again."

The Emirati was also queried on whether Aston Martin can fulfil teamowner Lawrence Stroll's big ambitions of becoming a frontrunning team in F1 in the next few years.

"They should," Ben Sulayem said. "And the way the investment is going, and then having a smart guy like Fernando [Alonso], I believe yes.

"Performance first is important. Winning is very hard. You can talk about Ferrari, but Ferrari did not win. But was it because it is slow? No.

"It’s maybe the reliability, the management, the whole thing mixed together.

"I think Aston Martin is not short of the finance. It maybe needs a different way of [doing things].

"And the changes that Mr. Stroll is changing now into it, bringing another driver, bringing a new discipline to his team, new personnel, that is very important also."

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