Paul Di Resta: "Ferrari's long-term correlation problems seem to be over"

Former F1 driver Paul Di Resta believes that Ferrari have finally put their problems behind them and are now the team to beat. The Italian team are the only team to win races after the summer break and Charles Leclerc topped FP1 at the Russian Grand Prix and looks like a favorite for the race win on Sunday. 

"Mercedes have not been on pole position for a number of races and we went to Singapore with the expectation that Lewis (Hamilton) would dominate there, but it was Ferrari who were fastest," Di Resta said to Sky Sports F1. 

“The big surprise for me is that they (Ferrari) have now solved the correlation issue. They were struggling for fifteen months, but now they are fully committed to it."

Mercedes have won the Russian Grand Prix every year since its introduction in 2014 but Ferrari are in the best position to beat them this season. However, the speed trap during FP1 shows that things are going to be close.  

“If you compare Ferrari and Mercedes, it is striking how much Ferrari loses on Mercedes. It would not surprise me if they were driving with a scaled-back engine."

If Ferrari are able to turn up their engine further then it will be a great battle between the top teams in qualifying and during the race.