Ferrari mocks Red Bull over tyres and pit stops

Ferrari indirectly criticised rivals Red Bull in a column on their website on Friday over the lingering tyre issue in the Formula One season.

Without naming the world champions Red Bull and Sebastian Vettel, Ferrari’s “horse whisperer” said that some may have forgotten that past races have also been won with a lot of pit stops.

Vettel and his team, as well as Mercedes and a few others, have not been happy with the 2013 rubbers provided by Pirelli, who have now promised modifications after next week’s Monaco Grand Prix.

Vettel finished fourth on Sunday in Spain with four pit stops, the same number that Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso and Felipe Massa needed to win the race and come third, respectively.

“These are difficult times for people with poor memories,” the column said. “Maybe the brain cells that control memory only operate selectively, depending on the results achieved on track by their owners.” Ferrari referred to the Spanish and Turkish races in 2011 when five of the six podium finishers also won with four stops. Both races were won by Vettel.

“It seems one must almost feel ashamed for choosing a strategy that, as always for that matter, is aimed at getting the most out of the package one has available,” the Ferrari column said.