Christian Horner believes Red Bull's Formula 1 domination of the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix weekend was a key turning point against rivals Ferrari. The Italian squad - of whom Mattia Binotto will step down as Team Principal at the end of 2022 - started the season with the fastest car as Red Bull battled reliability concerns. World Champion Max Verstappen retired in Bahrain and Australia as Ferrari's Charles Leclerc claimed 71 out of 78 points across the first three rounds - compared to Verstappen's haul of 25. However, at Imola Ferrari endured a tricky weekend: Carlos Sainz was punted off at Turn 1 and Leclerc threw a podium away with a late spin in a fastest lap attempt. It was this weekend which Horner specifically picked out as taking away Ferrari's "breathing space" in the title battle.
Horner identifies turning point
"We never lost sight of what our target was," Horner explained to media, including RacingNews365.com. "By the time that we got to Imola and winning the Sprint and the Grand Prix with our first one-two of the year, that was able to put the pressure back on Ferrari and it didn't give them any breathing space. "We just then kept efficiently developing the car, managing to lose a little bit of weight and Max has just been in sensational form this year. "You think back to some of the races that were so tight early on with Ferrari - Miami, Saudi Arabia and even in Bahrain. "It's been an incredible season for us." Horner also praised Leclerc for his efforts in a trying season at Ferrari - as he nabbed second place in the championship from Sergio Perez in the second Red Bull at the Abu Dhabi finale. "All credit to Charles on the season that he's had," said Horner. "He's been a great competitor and has raced with both of our drivers very cleanly."
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