It marked a new Ferrari, one that was building for the future. Sainz was clearly delivering excellent results and performances for McLaren — a team trying to rebuild, with a tricky car to drive and one that Sainz would help Ferrari beat in 2021 — but to replace Vettel showed huge faith in Leclerc alongside an admission that it might take time to get back to winning ways.
That was true a year ago, but the drivers delivered with third overall, and then the spectacular start to 2022 happened. Ferrari had looked good all pre-season, but in some ways never like the benchmark. It was just right in the mix at the front, the previous two years, and unlike that represented a clear step forward.
The brilliant first three races from Leclerc’s point of view then raised expectations to a level nobody could control, or match.
Ferrari’s not far away, and that’s what makes the failures so frustrating
There’s a journalist in the F1 media center who regularly gets some stick – including from myself – for arguing some strange stances such as that he’d rather finish third than second because second is so close to first, but third is just happy to get a trophy (or a medal when he tries to justify it with Olympic podiums).
Another one of his theories is that unless you win the title it’s better to not have a great year as a rookie in Formula 2 as your stock rises so far that it’s almost impossible to avoid it dropping in the second season. But if we apply that to Ferrari, he may have a point.
Early 2022 wins were greeted by euphoria — and raised expectations
Ferrari
If Ferrari’s season was run in reverse — it had started with a car that was closest to Red Bull but not quite there, and finished it with two wins and a second place despite the championship still being long-since won by Max Verstappen — it would be looked upon far more positively.
Even without that hypothetical situation, it probably deserves a bit more credit for the massive step forward it made after two tough years, even if it was preparing to take advantage of the new regulations.