Singapore: Vettel’s Undercut Justified by Binotto

A victory thanks to a well-executed strategy. For once, this phrase sums up the success of a Ferrari driver! In this instance, it is Sebastian Vettel, who won in Singapore with an undercut executed between the 19th and 20th lap of the race. This means an overtake caused by a pit stop, one lap before his opponent.

At a very slow pace at the start of the race (thirteen seconds slower per lap than in qualifying!), the leading drivers had this main objective: to manage the red-striped soft tires for as long as possible. Third in this train, threatened by Verstappen’s Red Bull, the decision was made by Scuderia to pit Vettel at the end of the 19th lap, one lap before his teammate, Charles Leclerc. In one lap, the German had made up his deficit (2’7” before the stop) and even passed the Monegasque at the exit of the latter’s pit stop.

The reason? “A late call” for the four-time world champion and his position on the circuit, Vettel explaining that his team ordered him over the radio to stop at the pit… at the twenty-first corner, just two corners away from diving into the pit lane! “An unfair maneuver” for Leclerc, who could have had priority to make his own stop.

Why such a decision?

To justify himself, Mattia Binotto stated to Sky Sports F1 that the decision to bring Vettel in was made… first to save him from Verstappen’s Red Bull, which also stopped on the 20th lap.

« When we stopped Sebastian, Verstappen was also ready to stop. So we decided to protect his position. The undercut was more effective than expected. As a result, when we stopped Sebastian, we thought Charles would be ahead by stopping on the next lap », added the Ferrari team leader, echoing Leclerc’s visible frustration.

« It was also the best opportunity for us to overtake Lewis. That way, we could stop Charles afterwards, with a clear track ahead for him… So it was the best time to stop Sebastian. »

*The* race-changing moment… 🔀#F1 #SingaporeGP pic.twitter.com/5GCYhWrvQQ

— Formula 1 (@F1) September 22, 2019

Why couldn’t Leclerc choose his strategy first?

Inevitably, such a question was suggested by many observers of this fifteenth race of the season. Initially, the leading driver has the choice of strategy. Could Leclerc have been the first to stop? The context was different, still according to Mattia Binotto.

« We couldn’t stop Charles (note: instead of Vettel). If you are leading the race, you don’t stop first. In fact, the best pit window was for Seb. »

The maneuver being thus executed, Vettel found himself in the lead of the race, notably controlling the three restarts after the Safety Car. These neutralizations were marked by radio messages from Leclerc, such as this exchange with Laurent Mékiés, the technical director of Scuderia Ferrari, where the Monegasque notably asked for full engine power to overtake Vettel. So, should the positions have been exchanged? The option was considered by Mattia Binotto on the pit-lane, before ultimately deciding to leave things as they were on the track, while asking his two drivers to “bring the cars home.”

Finally, Mattia Binotto ended up with a double, the first for Scuderia Ferrari in 2019, but with a frustrated young driver. To calm Leclerc down, the team principal of the Reds spoke with Nicolas Todt, the driver’s manager.

« I know that Charles is upset and frustrated, which is good as a driver, it’s the right attitude to have. Obviously for him (Leclerc), it’s a missed opportunity but I’m sure he’ll have many more chances in the future. »

« With time, I think he (editor’s note: Leclerc) will understand the situation we were in. »

Congratulations to Seb and the whole team. Obviously frustrating from inside the car but very happy for the team and for Seb. We never thought we would leave Singapore with the team’s best result of the season 🇸🇬
📸: @motorsportpics1 pic.twitter.com/3vSX65ymOJ

— Charles Leclerc (@Charles_Leclerc) September 22, 2019