Amidst all the doom and gloom for Ferrari, they have a very special event coming up next week. The debut of Mugello on the F1 calendar will also mark a historic 1000th Grand Prix race for the Scuderia. To commemorate the special occasion Ferrari are set to do a throwback to the 1950s.
According to reports, the Maranello-based outfit is all set to paint the SF1000’s of Charles Leclerc and Sebastian Vettel to the shades used in their first-ever Grand Prix. Moreover, to celebrate the special occasion, there will be a limited number of fans at the track as well (2800) who will get to see their beloved team sporting the darker red livery.
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Ferrari’s rivals, Mercedes, sported a similar special livery in Germany last year to mark the occasion of their 200th start as well as 125 years in the sport. However, that race didn’t quite go to plan with Bottas retiring and Hamilton finishing 9th. Ferrari will hope that they don’t suffer the same fate.
The race in Mugello will also be the first race of 2020 to feature any live spectators whatsoever. Usually, having fans at the track would have been a boon for Ferrari. But with the predicament they are in, it could very well be a bane because God knows how the Tifosi would react to yet another disastrous performance.
One can only imagine the anger and frustration among Ferrari fans. On the other hand, the presence of fans could prove to be a morale booster for the team. Perhaps it could land both Vettel and Leclerc in the Top-10 at least.
Charles Leclerc’s crash at Monza could complicate the paint job
The Monegasque’s high-speed crash while exiting the parabolica led to his retirement from the race. However, he escaped with barely any damage. But the same can’t be said of his car.
The Racing Department of the Scuderia will have to make a quick decision regarding Leclerc’s SF1000. One option is to rebuild the chassis and then send it for a new coat of paint, or if the damage is a lot, they’ll have to replace the whole chassis itself and then get the darker red paint on.
As for Vettel, he reportedly started the race in Monza with a new chassis because the previous one (that he used in Spa) was the one sent for a paint job.
It’s far from the ideal conditions that Ferrari would have hoped for, starting their 1000th Grand Prix. But can they find some joy in Mugello? Or will their special occasion be remembered for all the wrong reasons? We’ll soon find out.
