Reports in Italy suggest that Ferrari’s engineers are not too impressed by the early indications from their 2020 challenger.

2019 truly was an up and down season for the Scuderia – after finishing testing with what appeared to be the best car on the grid, that pace would vanish as Mercedes dominated the opening eight races of the season.

It wasn’t until after the summer break when Ferrari finally managed to extract some true performance from the SF90, claiming wins at Spa, Monza and Singapore’s Marina Bay Circuit, but allegations of cheating in the engine department and several blunders from both team and driver meant Mercedes were never really challenged.

Ferrari hope to mount a stronger challenge in 2020, but early reports from Leo Turrini in his Quotidiano blog, an F1 journalist with key sources at Ferrari, suggest that the 2020 car isn’t yet winning admirers.

“It seems to me that, so far, the indications from the simulator and the wind tunnel have not impressed the engineers,” he said.

“But keep in mind that there is still time.”

Another key talking point at Ferrari is Sebastian Vettel’s future with the team.

The four-time World Champion’s contract expires at the end of 2020, and the pressure is mounting after Charles Leclerc came into the team for 2019 and got the better of his vastly more experienced team-mate.

However, Turrini believes Vettel could well have a few more Ferrari years left in him, especially now that Max Verstappen has signed a new deal with Red Bull.

“I’m not so sure that 2020 will be Vettel’s last year in red. All the more so after Verstappen extended at Red Bull,” he said.

“Vettel is not the least bit affected by the hostility of the Italian media, for the simple reason that he does not read much of it.”

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