Ferrari believe their Red Bull rivals now only have a "negligible" advantage in straight line speed after making improvements to their car in recent weeks.
The two teams have produced by far the best cars on the grid this season, and have been a long way clear of anyone else in terms of performance. Ferrari's F1-75 has generally had the edge in the corners, but Red Bull have made up for that with the straight line speed of their RB18.
So while Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz have been nippier in the slower sections of a circuit, Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez have generally been able to keep them at bay with raw power down the straights. But that might not be the case any more, according to Mattia Binotto.
The Ferrari chief revealed the Scuderia has been working on a solution, and believes they have one. A newly-designed low-drag rear wing, used in conjunction with DRS, has seen Ferrari become almost as quick as Red Bull are in the faster sections of a circuit – as was shown at the Austrian Grand Prix.
"We had a disadvantage compared to the Red Bull, no doubt, in terms of straight line speed – especially in DRS zones," explained Binotto. "In terms of power of their DRS, compared to ours, we worked a lot on it. So the new rear wing that we introduced first with Charles in Canada, we have had it on both cars since the UK.
"And with that new rear wing, I think we have simply reduced the gap we had in terms of speed. I think they still have got a slight advantage, but it's very little or negligible." By changing the wing instead of looking for a solution by playing with downforce setups, they have gained speed without sacrificing anything in terms of tyre degradation or grip.
Ferrari were much quicker than Red Bull in the race on Sunday, with Leclerc spoiling the party and upstaging Verstappen in front of a crowd mostly made up of those supporting the Dutchman. It looked likely to be a one-two for the Scuderia, but Sainz was thwarted when his engine blew and flames engulfed his car.
By winning the race, Leclerc closed the gap to the defending champion slightly and is now only 38 points adrift. In the constructors' standings, Red Bull's advantage has been cut to 56 – setting up a potentially thrilling fight in both championships during the second half of the campaign.
