Patrese: Ferrari still has no clear plan of action

      Ricardo Patrese competed in Formula 1 from 1977 to 1993, and his main achievement was finishing 2nd in the 1992 championship when he was teammates with Nigel Mansell at Williams.

      But the Italian motorsport veteran, who is now 72 years old, continues to actively follow events in the world of Formula 1 and shared his opinion on what is currently happening in the Ferrari team ahead of the Italian Grand Prix.

      First of all, Patrese pointed out an incident that occurred during the race in Zandvoort when Charles Leclerc refused to follow team instructions and did not immediately go to the pit stop, which caused dissatisfaction from Lewis Hamilton, who ultimately finished fourth.

      We reported on this incident and how the seven-time world champion apologized to the team, but that was later, when nothing could be changed, and Patrese believes that Ferrari missed the chance for a podium at that time.

      "In Zandvoort, they at least missed the opportunity to get on the podium because they were too slow in making decisions regarding team tactics," the former driver stated in an interview with Vision4Sport. "In that situation, Ferrari acted very poorly. Lewis was behind his teammate, but he had to wait two extra laps before Leclerc let him through. He probably lost two or three seconds, and that was the difference that determined whether Lewis would get on the podium or not.

      When it's necessary to decide who should let whom through, decisions must be made instantly. Therefore, I can understand Hamilton's concerns and why he allowed himself such comments over the radio. However, since everything happens somewhat monotonously in modern Formula 1, when Lewis said what he said, everyone immediately became interested.

      Lewis should be given the status of driver No. 1. He is doing an excellent job and is currently performing more consistently than Charles. What happened in Zandvoort indicates that Ferrari still does not have a clear action plan. If they are aiming for the championship title, they must choose one of two options."

      After the Dutch Grand Prix, in an interview with Gazzetta dello Sport, Frederic Vasseur, the head of Scuderia, acknowledged that managing two drivers like Hamilton and Leclerc can be challenging: "When there are two champions on the track, controlling their actions is always difficult because both are at their peak and both are striving for victories."