Scuderia Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc revealed that there was very little margin for error when the season eventually resumes. Leclerc highlighted the importance of staying sharp as there won’t be any major breaks when the season gets underway. The Monegasque also backed Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes as favorites and asserted that Ferrari would have to take gambles to catch up.

Will Ferrari need to play catchup?

Ever since the end of pre-season testing in Barcelona, teams are yet to run their 2020 cars on track. Moreover, all 10 teams don’t have any meaningful real-world information obtained from competing in actual races. Due to Coronavirus, teams have shut their factories for several weeks now and haven’t developed their cars.

Ferrari, in particular, is starting the season on the back foot. The Italian team didn’t have a very successful preseason testing and many feel Ferrari is some way off the pace when compared to its rivals.

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Heading into the first race, teams will be using a primitive spec version of the car that hasn’t been used in a proper race. The major drawback teams face, is that F1 is planning to host a proper Championship in 2020. This could result in a packed schedule with no long breaks. That puts the onus on the drivers to extract the best car has to offer and not rely entirely on major upgrades.

And with Ferrari not having a competitive package, things aren’t looking bright for the Scuderia’s future.

Speaking to Auto Motor und Sport, Leclerc stressed the importance of a driver’s role in the current scenario.

Charles Leclerc highlights a potential problem

“It won’t be that easy this year,”

 “When things get going, there is no end to the end. There are no breaks in which you can make big leaps in development. That means that we drivers on the track work even more concentrated right from the start.

The Monegasque also believes Ferrari needs to take risks in the event of a shortened season to have any chance of stopping Mercedes. For a team that isn’t necessarily the sharpest with strategies, risky moves won’t give fans too much hope.

“Mercedes and Lewis are sure to start the season as favorites, even if there are only eight races. It will not be easy to beat them. We will definitely do something risk more in terms of strategy and maneuvers on the track. 

“The situation requires special decisions from those responsible. We drivers have to be prepared for everything” concluded the Monegasque.

As unlikely as it seems, a curveball in the form of a tweaked calendar could be the thing that rattles Mercedes.