Ferrari success in Spa, Monza ‘not a given' - Binotto

Ferrari Formula 1 team principal Mattia Binotto says his side cannot simply expect success at upcoming power-sensitive circuits in Belgium and Italy.

A lack of maximum downforce has hampered Ferrari’s performance at a number of circuits this year, with the team’s SF90 challenger faring better at tracks that reward strong straight-line speed and engine power.

The upcoming Belgian and Italian grands prix have been earmarked as races that Ferrari should be competitive at, and in theory, have a high chance of ending its barren winless run so far in 2019.

“I think it’s more power-sensitive so we should certainly be more competitive there but there is nothing that is given,” Binotto said.

“Our competitors are all very strong and we try to challenge ourselves.

“I think the situation will be different to Budapest and we will try to prepare ourselves the best to seek the first victory.”

After a difficult start to the season, Sebastian Vettel recorded back-to-back podiums ahead of the summer break, including a remarkable recovery drive to second-place at the German Grand Prix.

The German, who sits fourth in the championship and is 94 points adrift of championship leader Lewis Hamilton, conceded he cannot be completely satisfied despite his recent improved form.

“I need to be critical of myself because here and there I didn’t do the best job,” Vettel admitted when summarising the first half of his campaign.

“So that’s something that I need to focus on and need to get better in the second half of the season, which needs addressing.

“Other than that I think it was a bit up and down, some races were better, some races were worse.

“But certainly the last couple of races where maybe a bit better for me, whereas some races in the beginning I struggled a bit more when we tried a lot of things.

“I think it’s clear that we are not where we want to be. You look at the points table, you look at the areas in tracks where we are lacking compared to others, so we are addressing those things and we are working very hard.

“I don’t think we are short of commitment. People are very passionate so I think the key now is to remain calm, do our homework and obviously try and catch up as much as we can. That’s the key priority.”