Steeped in history, culture, and tradition, the Ferrari name’s level of prestige and class in F1 is unmatched by any other team in the sport’s history. But have they always capitalized on it? Carlos Sainz doesn’t think so. When he joined Ferrari in 2021, after their worst season in decades — in which they finished sixth — Mattia Binotto was in charge.
The Italian was tasked with rebuilding the team and its image, with the pairing of Sainz and Leclerc expected to take things to the next level on the track. The drivers certainly did their part. Neither Sainz nor Charles Leclerc appeared to be making any significant mistakes. The real issue, however, lay with Ferrari itself.
Under Binotto, the team seemed like a shadow of its former self, not just in terms of on-track performance but also with off-track activities, which felt lackluster. Despite being one of the sharpest minds in the powertrains department, Binotto never seemed like a strong leader and rarely gave the impression that he was focused on enhancing Ferrari’s commercial appeal. Sainz has since confirmed just that.
In an interview with Soy Motor in February, the Madrid-born driver revealed that Ferrari had undergone significant changes since Binotto’s departure in 2022 and Frederic Vasseur’s arrival to replace him as their team principal.
“With Fred it is a very different team,” Sainz said. “Ferrari right now, if you look at it, not only I think at the performance level, that is, results, but also at the marketing level, at the social networks level, it is a Ferrari completely different from 2022.”
That year, the Maranello-based outfit started strong, winning two of the first three races thanks to Leclerc. However, their championship charge soon unraveled, plagued by mistakes, strategy errors, and indecision regarding driver hierarchy.
Additionally, the “social media mess,” in Sainz’s words, turned Ferrari’s historic name into one of the biggest laughing stocks of the paddock.
Now, in addition to an improved mechanical package, the Ferrari name oozes class once again with Vasseur at the helm.
“Right now, it’s a team that has undergone many changes, and I think Hamilton’s recent presentation speaks for itself,” the 30-year-old added, referring to Lewis Hamilton’s iconic Ferrari unveiling, where he stood in front of Enzo Ferrari’s house next to a Ferrari F40 — an image that garnered over 5 million likes on Instagram.
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“It is a team that has been built, rebuilt and now it is a team not only mythical, proud of its past, but also exploits it at the commercial level, at the marketing level in a much better way than what was exploited in 2022,” Sainz added.
The only thing left for Ferrari now is to add to its storied history and start winning titles again. Last year, they came close, finishing just 14 points behind McLaren in the championship.
Unfortunately, this year, their performance has dipped, with the team currently P4 in the standings, 110 points behind McLaren. For now, they seem distant from title contention, but with new regulations set to arrive next year and Vasseur’s focused leadership, better days appear to be on the horizon for the team.
As for Sainz, he had to leave Ferrari this year to make way for Hamilton. Now at Williams, he doesn’t take credit for being a part of Vasseur’s rejuvenated workforce that helped Ferrari improve. But he did say, “The Ferrari 2022 team to what it is now in 2025 is that for me it is another world, that is another world and it is a much more serious team, much more reference and more what should be Ferrari.”
