Scuderia Ferrari
Ferrari team principal Stefano Domenicali insists that he knows where his outfit needs to improve after the opening two rounds of the 2014 season.
Ferrari sits in third place in the constructors' championship ahead of this weekend's Bahrain Grand Prix but Domenicali insists that the team can close the gap to early leaders Mercedes.
"We knew from the very beginning that with these rules changes the challenge will be massive," he told The Official F1 Website. "When we went about designing the 2014 car we knew it would not only be a matter of the engine - where we believe we are quite strong - but also a matter of considering the whole power unit.
"We know that other engine manufacturers have advanced knowledge because they use that technology in their road cars, so we knew it was not going to be easy. But we know the areas where we need to improve and falling into disappointment doesn’t help. I know that we have improved our organisation in some areas where we have been weak."
Domenicali urged spectators not to write off Ferrari and cited the performance of Red Bull since the first pre-season test at Jerez.
"We saw clearly in the past with the blown exhaust that we were not able to exploit the maximum from it, so I am confident that we have taken the right route," he said.
"It is a matter of time, but I would say that we have to be careful of drawing conclusions now. For sure Mercedes has been the best in terms of performance, and that is our target now. Don’t forget we are only at the second race of the season, so judgment has to be taken very carefully. Just think back: after the first test people believed that Red Bull were finished. We have to be calm."
Nonetheless, when asked to pinpoint a specific weakness with the F14T, Domenicali echoed comments made by technical director James Allison.
"Basically everywhere," said Domenicali. "I don’t think by fixing one problem you fix the whole performance - so we need to work to have a more efficient car; we need to work to have a better engine; we need to work to exploit better the balance between electric power and traditional engine power. Everywhere!"
