Ferrari Anticipating a Hard Fight in Hungary

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is looking forward to the Hungarian Grand Prix with upgrades for its car, and it is followed by a two-week vacation for all of the teams. Ferrari expects to do well but knows that it will not be easy.

The Hungaroring has 14 corners over 4.3km. It is a tight track that favors a good qualifying position, which has been a weakness for Ferrari this year. The team has not scored a pole position all season.

“It’s a short track, with a lot of corners one after the other with no long straights.

“Overtaking is difficult, with changes of direction all the time, which make it a fun track. So it’s an old style race track and Sunday afternoon can be tough, but I like going back to these old fashioned venues,” said Felipe Massa

If Ferrari does not qualify well, it will have to fight its way up through the ranks on a track on which it is very difficult to pass.

I think we can be competitive, so I’m hoping our weekend goes in the opposite way to what people are expecting,” he said.

Tires are going to play a major factor in the race, like they have for this entire season. Pirelli is bringing medium and soft compound tires, and the track temperature is predicted to be a blistering 37 Celsius (98.6 Fahrenheit). Tire degradation could be a major hurdle for all of the teams, and the right setup to prevent it will be key.

In 27 Hungarian Grands Prix, Ferrari has scored just five career wins, and the last one was in 2004. The only pole positions it has ever scored there came during the Michael Schumacher/Rubens Barrichello era. Fernando Alonso has scored only one career win at the Hungaroring, and Massa’s best performance ever there was fourth place.

Ferrari will have to dig deep to win in Hungary.