I am in Maranello for a few days to be as well prepared as possible for the final part of the season and specifically, the Belgian Grand Prix, the first round on the calendar after the summer break.v We have moved into the final third of the season, so it’s time to sum it up so far. I think we can be pleased with what we have done to date. We are still in the fight for the championship, which is the most important thing. It’s true that some races have gone better than others, just as there were some lucky breaks and times when bad luck seemed to follow us around, but I believe these things tend to balance out. Over the last two races, we have considerably reduced the gap to the championship leader. There are five of us all within twenty points, so it’s as if we are starting from square one: from now to the end of the championship we can expect seven finals.

We must have a lot of respect for everyone. McLaren has been very strong, especially Hamilton and Red Bull has shown it always has a competitive car. This is a time to stay cool, without succumbing to the tension that will grow with every passing race, on the track and away from it. We will need to be clever to manage this situation, staying calm at all times.

We always aim for the win, but there was no chance of that in Budapest, which I was definitely not pleased about. However, we know some tracks suit our car more and others are more suited to our competitors: we must try and win the races where our car is strong and finish second in the others, as was the case in Budapest. Continuity will be the cornerstone to this title fight. It was surprising to see how the relative performance between us and Red Bull changed in the space of a week! I reckon that actually our performance is pretty similar, especially in comparison to McLaren, Mercedes and Renault and that maybe in Germany, the Red Bull car was not so competitive, while it was at its maximum in Hungary on a track that was a perfect match for its characteristics.

The break comes at the right time. July was very busy with three races in four weeks: drivers, mechanics, the whole team, we all need a rest after this rush. We set ourselves the target of reducing the points gap and we did it. Now is the time to ensure we have the right spirit in which to tackle the final seven races.

I won’t be doing anything special over the next few weeks. After leaving Maranello, I will stay with my family, partly in Switzerland and partly in Spain: no travelling, no airports, just relaxing!

In my career, I have been in the fight for the title three times, from 2005 to 2007. Twice I was in the role of the hare, so I can appreciate the different situations that arise, even if does not mean much. When you are in the lead, it is very stressful if you lose points, but when you are trying to catch up you are aware that you cannot afford to make any mistakes, even if it is a nice feeling in a team when you know you are starting to fight back. As I said earlier, for us the most important thing from now to Abu Dhabi is to try and always finish on the podium: it won’t be vital to win at all costs, but whoever gets six or seven podiums will be champion.

In a few weeks, we will be at Spa, definitely the most enjoyable circuit to drive. It is a very long track, with every type of corner and climbs and drops and it gives you a fantastic feeling. There are tracks as nice as Spa, for example, I like Malaysia a lot and Monaco has a special atmosphere, but all the same, the Ardennes track is unique.

Maranello, 2 August – On the day after the Hungarian Grand Prix and following a long and in-depth debriefing this morning, Ferrari President Luca di Montezemolo gathered together all the staff of the Gestione Sportiva in the Logistica pavilion to look at the current situation as the final third of the season approaches. Along with Team Principal Stefano Domenicali and the senior Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro engineers, Fernando Alonso was also present, having flown back from Budapest to Maranello last night with the team, as he is spending a few days working alongside his engineers, before the final sprint in the World Championship.

Naturally, everyone at the GeS, as the Gestione Sportiva is known, is very pleased with the way the result of the last couple of races has reopened the situation in the two classifications: there was spontaneous applause for Fernando and also, in absentia for Felipe, who has already flown back to Brazil to spend the summer break with his family. However, it is clearly understood that the work load has to be stepped up even further, and it needs to be of the highest standard in order to close the technical gap to the fastest cars, which is significant, as was demonstrated yesterday in Budapest.

“It was a very busy July, which ended in a very nice way for us,” said Montezemolo on www.ferrari.com. “Especially when you look at where we are today, compared to one month ago. For this, I wish to thank our entire workforce, because they put in so much effort to achieve these results. In Hockenheim, we finished first and second and yesterday we came away with second and fourth places, which was the most we could have achieved. The engineers put their heads down and worked on improving the car and the drivers did a great job: Fernando got an amazing start and very nearly managed to take the lead at the first corner, while Felipe brought home a significant points haul, in what was a special race for him, one year on from his accident. It’s true that earlier in the season we have wasted great opportunities and there is still regret for some perplexing decisions, but we must look ahead and believe in the fact that today, we are in the fight for the Championship. This is the Ferrari I like to see and the one our fans want to see: a team that can fight and deliver the results. We must continue like this and then see where we are at the end. We know we must work even harder and with determination on the development of the car, but our people don’t need me to tell them that.”

The next few days will be very busy at Maranello. Up until Saturday, everyone will be working at a frenetic pace to prepare the cars for the Belgian Grand Prix. The cars which raced in Hungary yesterday are already back at the Gestione Sportiva and are undergoing the usual rebuild. Sunday sees the start of the compulsory two week break from all work, with activity resuming on Monday 23 August, everyone having fully recharged their batteries to tackle the final rush of a World Championship which looks like being a very open fight.