Ferrari team principal Maurizio Arrivabene says Sebastian Vettel’s podium finish at the 2016 Formula 1 season finale is a “boost of motivation” for Ferrari.
The German driver started fifth but used an alternative strategy, going onto the super-soft tyres late on, to move up to third place.
He caught the Mercedes drivers towards the end of the race, with Lewis Hamilton backing up Nico Rosberg in a bid to secure the 2016 title.
But Vettel couldn’t find a way through and had to settle for third, behind race winner Hamilton and new champion Rosberg.
After a tough and win-less season, Arrivabene says the podium finish will be a boost to the team’s spirits ahead of the winter.
“This podium finish is a boost to the motivation of the whole team, for the people back home, who have been working so hard since this summer, and for the ones at the track, who never gave up,” he said.
“It’s clear that we did not reach the targets we had set for ourselves, yet this last race shows that something is moving in the right direction.”
