Ferrari wants to keep its good moment at Paul Ricard

MADRID, 21 Jul. (EUROPA PRESS) -

The Ferrari team goes with renewed spirits to the final sprint of the first part of the Formula World Championship, which faces its last two appointments before the summer break, the first this weekend at the Circuit Paul Ricard, scene of a French Grand Prix in the one that Carlos Sainz (Ferrari) and Fernando Alonso (Alpine) hope to forget the troubles of Austria.

The championship has taken a small turn in the last two tests, in Silverstone (England) and in Spielberg (Austria), tracks that have once again seen the 'Cavallino Prancing' smile, which has managed to largely curb the overwhelming dominance that was showing Red Bull with the Dutchman Max Verstappen.

The Austrian team had six wins in a row to take off the current champion before Carlos Sainz made history in the British Grand Prix and Charles Leclerc returned to winning ways at 'home' to his rivals. But despite this threat of reaction from the 'Scuderia', Verstappen, who won the Sprint race in Austria, continues to command with some comfort in the World Championship overall with 208 points, for the 170 of the Monegasque driver.

This one needs to maintain the pressure on the leader of the championship to try to cut as much as possible to continue opting for the title for the second part of the campaign. For this reason, the two consecutive races at Paul Ricard and the following week at the Hungaroring seem key to the future of the World Championship.

The first appointment will be on the French track where last year a Verstappen was already the winner, whose car is proving to be much more reliable than the Ferrari, where the problems are mainly focused on the figure of Carlos Sainz. Hasselt's man dominated qualifying and the race in 2021, while Leclerc could only be fifteenth with tire problems and in what he described as "the most difficult race" in his journey in F-1.

Behind both is the other Red Bull of Sergio Pérez, who after his victory in Monaco has alternated two joys with two second places with two retirements, which have lagged 57 points behind his teammate, and the other Ferrari, the one from a Sainz who saw his great joy at Silverstone stopped in Austria.

The 'F1-75' from Madrid failed again this season and added his fourth abandonment of the season, so he could not cut 'Checo' in third place, who has 18 points, and saw how the British George Russell (Mercedes) stalks him again (5 points).

Seeking to leave in the best possible mood on vacation, the Spaniard will try to get back in the fight with Verstappen and Leclerc on a track where in 2021 he was left out of the points, although he is studying an engine change that would entail a penalty in the grid and make things more complicated in a weekend where it is expected that Mercedes, which has three consecutive podiums with the Englishman Lewis Hamilton, is still trying to give 'war'.

For his part, Fernando Alonso (Alpine) also heads into his team's home race eager to make amends after another trouble-filled weekend at Spielberg. The two-time world champion could not score any points in the Sprint as he could not even participate due to an electronic failure, then he had to start last when changing the power unit and on Sunday, a failure in the pits hindered his comeback .

In any case, the Asturian driver once again demonstrated his skill and experience at the wheel to finish in tenth place and add for the sixth consecutive Grand Prix. The man from Oviedo is now hoping for a 'perfect' weekend at Paul Ricard, where he was eighth last year, to try to be better than his teammate Esteban Ocon again and remain well established in the 'Top 10'.

-Friday.

14.00-15.00 Free 1.

17.00-18.00 Free 2.

-Saturday.

13.00-14.00 Free 3.

16.00-17.00 Qualification.

-Sunday.

15.00 Race.