Ferrari says the possibility of considering team orders between its drivers remains “very, very far”.
In Spain, Red Bull caused a stir by asking Sergio Perez to pull aside and allow Max Verstappen through, a call the Mexican called “unfair” at the time, although later accepted as the two drivers were on different tyre strategies at the time.
Given Charles Leclerc’s impressive start to this season, there have also been suggestions that the Italian team shouldn’t wait to throw its full support behind the Monegasque’s championship bid, particularly given Carlos Sainz’s struggles.
But Ferrari sporting director Laurent Mekies insists such a move is still premature.
“No, I think it’s very early days for that,” he said.
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“I think if you had a look at last year, the points difference at the beginning of the season, you could have said the same thing and in the end, things change.
“We are pushing a lot to make sure Carlos can adapt, Carlos can get more comfortable. He has shown extremely strong performance last year, we are convinced he will develop stronger performance in the very short term.
“So, it’s race six of 22 races, we are very, very far from having the good problem you are talking about. It is a topic for much later.”
A first retirement of the year in Barcelona saw Leclerc lose the lead in the Drivers’ standings to Max Verstappen for the first time in 2022.
But he still remains 39 points ahead of Sainz ahead of his home race in Monte Carlo this weekend.
