In just under two days, the first of two home weekends for Ferrari will begin at the Imola circuit. After having triumphed at dusk and at sunrise in distant countries, the Reds is called to continue the period of strength in the racetrack dedicated to Enzo and Dino Ferrari, under a tricolor sky and in front of what will be to all intents and purposes a tidal wave red.
There is talk of almost certain rain for the Friday sessions (FP1 and qualifying), while it seems that the sprint qualifying and the race will take place on dry asphalt. We have seen that Ferrari is very competitive on the latter, now it's time to show that we are fast even in the wet.
So far there hasn't been any official session where rain has fallen, except for a few hours during the tests in Barcelona where the track was artificially wet. Ferrari, in any case, seems to be promising even in these conditions: the F1-75, in fact, is one of the few cars on the grid that doesn't generate load almost exclusively from the rear, but also exploits its enormous bellies. This could be an advantage that shouldn't be underestimated as, in wet conditions, teams usually increase ground clearance, thus losing a lot of downforce coming from the bottom.
Charles Leclerc will want to continue an almost perfect start to the season: in the first three races he recorded two wins and a second place, two pole positions and a second place and three best laps, collecting 71 points out of the 78 available. His is the second best start to the season by a driver in the hybrid era, behind only Nico Rosberg who at the beginning of 2016 won three out of three races collecting 75 points (the maximum at the time, as the rule of the additional point for the fast lap).
On the other side of the Cavallino box, Carlos Sainz will certainly be eager to have a good weekend on Italian soil, after having experienced a nightmare one at Albert Park. The qualities of the Spanish driver are evident: we must not forget that in 2021 he finished the championship ahead of his fellow Monegasque and won the "title" of "first of the others" behind the Mercedes and the Red Bulls.
Ferrari proved they have probably the most complete and solid lineup on the grid, finishing a 1-2 in the opening race in Bahrain. On the Emilia circuit, the Scuderia achieved two doubles, in 1982 and 2002. In Formula One these statistics are worth little or nothing, but if the second arrived twenty years after the first and there are just as many between 2002 and this season, Ferrari also has the numbers on its side to try and make the home fans rejoice.
