Infatuation or love? What is it with Ferrari’s affairs with Mercedes and Red Bull? Why are those teams treating the Scuderia with such kid gloves?
It’s an especially intriguing question, considering the patent lack of any such thing between Red Bull and Mercedes. Yet they both heap praise on the red team for no apparent reason.
Relations remain taut between Verstappen and Hamilton, frigid between Wolff and Horner. Yet none of them are shy to talk Ferrari, or its drivers up?
Copse Failed to Deliver on 2022 Drama
The acrimony between Ferrari’s principal rivals of course boiled over when Hamilton and Verstappen so famously clashed at Silverstone’s now even more famous flat-out Copse Corner last year.
So, the world held its breath as Hamilton this year rounded the same 300 km/h corner inside Leclerc. Not that anyone needed to hold their breath. The two of them somehow went on to fight to the finish.
Intriguingly however, Lewis told Charles, “I was like, fuck, I don’t want to just clip you and send you off,” as they chatted in the cool room. “Charles did a great job, a great battle,” Hamilton would later elaborate to the media.
“He’s such a sensible driver. “Definitely different to what I experienced last year. “Copse, for example – we got through there no problem.” A salute to the Monegasque? Or a dig at his Dutch archrival? You decide…
Hamilton’s boss has likewise lauded his red rivals whenever he’s had the opportunity, so far this season. “I can only congratulate Ferrari,” Toto Wolff for example admitted in an earlier interview. “Previously they were about 10 kW behind, but now they are another 10 kW ahead. “We have never seen such a big progress in such a short time.”
Red Bull Loves Ferrari Too
It’s not much different over at Red Bull. Asked if he took any comfort from Ferrari’s apparent recent power unit weaknesses, team boss Christian Horner chose not to stick the knife in. Something he has never failed to do when discussing Mercedes, for instance.
“Not really,” Horner hunched. “They had a very strong car and could have well finished first and second in Austria. “We must focus on ourselves and just get the best out of our own package. “So we’re not too focused on Ferrari.”
Like Hamilton, Max Verstappen has also praised Leclerc. “He’s always fast,” Max recently responded to a question on Charles’ earlier in the season.
“He’s very talented, whether he’s overtaking or defending, he always does it very well,” added the World Champ.
Verstappen’s actions on track however speak far louder than his words. Just as Lewis somehow found the room to give Leclerc space at Copse, and elsewhere around that British lap, Max has reacted completely differently to the Ferrari, than he did that black Mercedes through the latter stages of 2021.
There was no overt aggression and he failed to crowd or jostle Leclerc through any of Charles’ three overtakes in Austria. Which was somewhat different to how Max reacted to Lewis’ presence on track at any time in 2021, no?
Ferrari Must Milk the Love While it Can!
Indeed Max became feistier when he realised Charles had issues later in that race. Yet he was still, well, behaved in his actions. Sure, that could be put down to Verstappen having a far-handier championship advantage over Leclerc, versus his close fight with Hamilton last year.
If the Ferrari creeps closer as the season progresses, who knows, maybe Max and Charles’ rivalry will indeed revisit its famous karting acidity.
That only considers Max and Charles in isolation. And two, maybe three months down the road. Right here, right now, however, Ferrari’s seemingly incestuous relationships with both its deadly rivals seem to just grow rosier.
Of course, this blessed situation could reverse at any given moment. But until then, Ferrari needs to enjoy, and milk Red Bull and Mercedes’ love while it can. Good things don’t last forever, after all…