Christian Klien on Ferrari: “You can’t become world champions like that”

Ahead of Ferrari’s home race at Monza, tensions are running high within the Scuderia. Whilst the celebrations in red in honour of Michael Schumacher this weekend are set to be grand (marking 30 years since Schumi joined Ferrari and 20 years since his retirement), the current situation is not looking quite so rosy. Following the race at Zandvoort just under two weeks ago, Lewis Hamilton levelled vocal criticism at the team’s strategy and communication. He had already been ranting over the radio during the Grand Prix. With Hamilton finishing 4th and Charles Leclerc 5th, Ferrari missed out on the Grand Prix podium.

Klien: Ferrari is keeping its drivers in the dark

And now, of all times, the prestigious home race at Monza is coming up. In Austria, ServusTV is broadcasting the Italian Grand Prix. Ahead of the race, ServusTV expert Christian Klien assesses the situation at Ferrari as follows: “They’re leaving the drivers a bit in the dark at times, whilst other teams are giving clearer instructions. As far as pure race pace is concerned, they could have won at Zandvoort, but qualifying already prevented that. With their strategy, they’re then creating additional stumbling blocks for themselves.” The Austrian analyses the situation clearly: “You can’t become world champions like that.”

For Ferrari, the Italian Grand Prix at Monza – located just under two hours’ drive from the Ferrari headquarters in Maranello – is, of course, a special race. The Tifosi are out in force at the Autodromo Nazionale Monza, the stands bathed in red. The high-speed circuit in Italy is traditionally a Ferrari stronghold, and the race is a seasonal highlight for the Scuderia.

Ferrari lacks top speed

However, Klien does not expect a home victory on the circuit, where average speeds reach 250 km/h. The former driver (49 GPs) says: “As we saw at Silverstone and Spa, Ferrari lacks top speed. Nevertheless, they need to present a united front as a team to secure a decent result.” And that’s where the aforementioned issue of team orders could potentially stand in their way.

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