F1 News: Ferrari's Mattia Binotto says strategy errors have cost Mercedes race wins this year
The Mexico City GP was nothing short of a struggle for Ferrari, whose F1-75 was oddly uncompetitive throughout the race weekend.
Ferrari faced significant struggles in terms of reliability and performance, with persistent engine issues and terrible handling interfering with the team's progression.
For perhaps the first time in 2022, the Scuderia was not even in contention for the podium - as Mercedes continues to make important strides ahead of the 2023 season.
The German squad has introduced a series of upgrades in preparation for an essential winter of development - as the team looks to bridge the gap to Ferrari and Red Bull.
In an interview with formu1a.uno, Ferrari team principal Mattia Binotto was asked if the upward trajectory of the Silver Arrows is a concern:
"Mercedes is coming back because they are developing even more than us, as we stopped earlier to focus on 2023.
"So I am not worried about their improvements because I know that we have stopped with our development [for this year's car]...
"In Hungary, we have been criticised, and it happens when we make choices that are not completely right.
"But Mercedes has lost the last few races by making the wrong choice of tyres, so it is not just us who make certain mistakes.
"We came to the conclusion that the soft-medium strategy was the best choice because, on Friday, we saw the soft didn't have such great tyre degradation.
"We had to manage the tyres to make a stop, and this is also part of the motivation for our pace."
Ferrari has faced significant criticism for its strategic and operational hiccups this year, which have prevented the Italian squad from seriously competing against Red Bull for the championship.
Binotto has always defended Ferrari's decisions in interviews with the media, even after seemingly inexcusable mistakes and oversights.
The Ferrari team principal seems frustrated with how the team's errors have been scrutinised this year, pointing towards Mercedes' mistakes in recent events.
It seems quite a nonsensical stretch to compare Ferrari's diabolical errors with Mercedes' near-misses in recent events, so time will tell if the Italian squad learns from its failures.