Damon Hill said Ferrari has huge potential, but needs to be more decisive in decision making during races if it still has title ambitions in 2022
Charles Leclerc's mistake at the French GP was a major blow to Ferrari, but again, the team found itself in the lurch with confusing strategies that cost Carlos Sainz positions in the race at Paul Ricard. And even though the Spaniard has defended the Maranello team, saying that the criticism is exaggerated, there are those who see the point as a weakness, as is the case of Damon Hill.
On Sky F1's Any Driven Monday program, the 1996 champion spoke of feeling that there is a problem in communication between team and drivers that needs to be addressed. "The communications in the pits seem a bit halfway through," the Englishman assessed.
"They are neither there nor here. Someone needs to take over and say 'We are making a decision. Whether it's the drivers or the strategists," added the former driver.
Even though Red Bull claims that Max Verstappen would have won the French GP anyway, Ferrari was always very strong, competitive, and was smart to choose the setup with more downforce to save tire wear. The tactic was having an effect, but it didn't even result in a podium finish.
About the next stages, Hill still sees Ferrari alive, but the race management failures need to end. "The potential with Ferrari is huge, I think if they can solve these problems, they will be a threat. If they can do that between now and the end of the season, it could be a very tight finish."
Finally, the Englishman also highlighted the stance of Sainz, who even though he was hampered by the team's error in the first pit-stop - Sainz was released by the team and almost hit Alexander Albon's Williams in the pit-lane - has been more of a leader than Leclerc.
"Carlos struck me as a team leader. He seems to be more familiar with strategy, he seems to be able to make decisions. Charles is clearly fast, possibly even faster than Carlos in the team," he finished.