Unwell Ferrari boss Binotto to fly home and miss Abu Dhabi GP

Ferrari Team Principal Mattia Binotto will fly home to Italy rather than attending the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, after becoming unwell with an illness that is not Covid-19 related.

Binotto had already missed two race weekends this year – Turkey and Bahrain – through choice, with control of the trackside leadership handed to Sporting Director Laurent Mekies.

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Mekies will now take the reins again this weekend, as Binotto flies back on Thursday, where he is understood to be set to take a few days of rest to allow himself a chance to recover from the mild illness.

Binotto became unwell in Bahrain and rather than flying onto Abu Dhabi for this weekend’s race, decided to fly straight home.

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It means he will miss Sebastian Vettel’s final weekend with the team, the four-time champion heading to Aston Martin for next year, with Carlos Sainz joining to team up with Charles Leclerc.

Ferrari are currently sixth in the constructors’ championship on 131 points, 41 adrift of Renault, but 28 clear of AlphaTauri.