Ferrari

2018 marks a decade since Ferrari's last F1 title. Can it bounce back from a near miss last season and finally end its drought?

Lewis Larkam

21 Mar 2018

Scuderia Ferrari

GP Starts: 948
Wins: 228
Pole Positions: 213
Fastest Laps: 243
Drivers’ Championships: 15
Constructors’ Championships: 16

Drivers

5. Sebastian Vettel GER
7. Kimi Raikkonen FIN

2017 in review - Ferrari woke up from its F1 slumber to pull off a revitalised championship bid with hopes of securing its first title of any form in over a decade. The season got off to the perfect start, with Sebastian Vettel winning the Australian Grand Prix, the first of three wins from the opening six races as he built a steady points lead. That advantage would last until round 11 at Monza, when Mercedes and Lewis Hamilton’s fightback to a fourth consecutive title began in earnest. The second half of Ferrari’s season will want to be forgotten by all at Maranello, with just one victory in Brazil following the Italian squad’s capitulation over the Asian leg, in which Vettel’s title hopes came crashing down to earth.

What’s changed for 2018? - While Ferrari’s drivers remain the same, changes have been made behind the scenes to the Scuderia’s technical department in a bid to boost performance and reliability, and ultimately avoid its renewed championship charge from unravelling once more. The team has also opted for a more aggressive design with its 2018 contender, choosing to follow the longer wheelbase concept pioneered by Mercedes last season. Ferrari will hope these tweaks and improved in-season development will provide the platform to elevate it to greater success in 2018.

Key man - Kimi Raikkonen. Vettel already proved his credentials in 2017 and if he can keep up the sort of form he showed last year he should be in the mix for the title fight, but it is the driver in the other side of the Ferrari garage that will be key to its hopes. Raikkonen endured another mixed and inconsistent campaign in 2017, taking his first pole since 2008 and coming agonisingly close to his first win in four years at Monaco, but his performances fluctuated across the season as he finished a distant fourth in the drivers’ standings - scoring 100 points less than Valtteri Bottas. A much better showing in 2018 is needed if Ferrari is to have any hopes of taking the fight to Mercedes in the constructors’ championship.

Constructors’ Championship prediction - 2nd