Ferrari reject claims Mattia Binotto will be sacked as team principal

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Ferrari have rejected claims that team principal Mattia Binotto will be axed after the end of the 2022 Formula 1 season.

A report by Italian outlet Gazzette dello Sport stated Binotto - who has been under intense scrutiny this year after a number of high-profile strategic errors from the Ferrari pit wall - would be replaced by Alfa Romeo team principal Fred Vasseur for the 2023 season.

It added that Vasseur was highly regarded by Ferrari, who supply engines to the Alfa Romeo team - which are the Sauber operation to be supplied by Audi from 2026.

However, Ferrari have moved to dismiss the speculation in a short statement online.

It read: “In relation to speculation in certain media regarding Scuderia Ferrari Team Principal Mattia Binotto’s position, Ferrari states that these rumours are totally without foundation.”

Binotto, who was formerly head of Ferrari’s engine department and chief technical officer, has been team principal since the start of the 2019 season, replacing Maurizio Arrivabene, and oversaw Charles Leclerc’s memorable win in Monza in 2019.

After two years without a win, Ferrari produced a car capable of matching the might of Red Bull and Mercedes this season amid new regulations - with Leclerc winning two out of the first three races.

However, their chances diminished due to a combination of engine failures and strategy confusion, with Monaco, Silverstone and Budapest particular examples of a lack of clairty from the Scuderia pit wall.

Such mistakes severely dented Leclerc’s hopes of challenging Max Verstappen for the World Championship, while the Prancing Horse are now just 19 points ahead of third-placed Mercedes in the Constructors’ Championship with one race to go.

Despite Carlos Sainz picking up his first victory in F1 at the British Grand Prix, Ferrari have not won since Leclerc’s victory in Austria in July - a winless streak of 10 races - resulting in focus placed on Binotto’s position.

Yet this latest statement has rebuked such speculation, ahead of the final Grand Prix of the 2022 season in Abu Dhabi this weekend.