CEO of Ferrari rates Leclerc higher than Sainz for the next few years

Ferrari have developed an extremely competitive car over the winter, yet the gap to Max Verstappen and Red Bull Racing in both World Championships is extremely large. The Italian team has been heavily criticised for mistakes made in recent months, but John Elkann believes Mattia Binotto should not be blamed.

Binotto is currently the team boss at the Maranello-based formation. The 52-year-old Italian is originally an engineer, so he has done a great job in putting Ferrari back in contention for victories. However, his management skills are still sometimes questioned. Elkann, the CEO of Ferrari, does not seem to be under the impression that Binotto is going to disappear from the scene any time soon.

When Elkann is asked by La Gazzetta dello Sport whether he is satisfied with Binotto's work, he replied: "Not satisfied, because I think there is always room for improvement. But I do think that trusting Binotto and his team was the right thing to do and it has paid off. Thanks to them we are competitive and successful again."

Ferrari and a World Title

The big goal is still to win a World Championship. The last title dates back to 2008 when the constructors' title in Formula 1 was won. Elkann believes that the Leclerc-Sainz duo can bring back the old days at Ferrari. However, their ambitions are bigger than that.

"I am confident that we will win not only the constructors' championship but also the Drivers' Championship and that Leclerc will be in pole position [for that]," the top executive said. Elkann is not talking so much about the 2022 season, but he thinks Sainz (who he calls a 'great' driver, by the way) will lose out to Leclerc in the coming years.