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FIORANO, Italy - Ferrari's team principal Maurizio Arrivabene is sticking to his target of three wins during 2015 despite the halfway point looming and Mercedes having chalked-up its fifth 1-2 finish from eight races.
The Italian told reporters after Sunday's Austrian F1 GP,adding that he still felt it possible: "I said we want to win three races and I'm still here. We want to win three races."
The Red Bull Ring witnessed the second race in a row without a Ferrari driver on the podium and the seventh Mercedes win of the campaign.
LOOSE-NUT DEBACLE
Dominant Mercedes also completed a year of pole positions, with Lewis Hamilton chalking up his seventh of the season before losing out to determined team mate Nico Rosberg in the race.
Arrivabene had said before the season's first race, in Australia, that he would be happy if Ferrari won three races and his statement looked more achievable after Sebastian Vettel's victory in Malaysia.
Four-times champion Vettel was on the podium five times in his first six races for Ferrari and arguably should have been there again in Canada and Austria had circumstances not conspired against him.
In Montreal, he had to fight from 18th and made fifth after a grid penalty and problems in qualifying and in Austria was robbed of third when a wheel nut jammed during a pit stop.
"We were not that far (behind)," Arrivabene said. "I have to say, Sebastian made a very good race. Mercedes is still stronger, we threw away one more time the podium for a stupid piece that we need to fix as soon as possible.
"It is not acceptable."
Ferrari chairman Sergio Marchionne said Vettel, whose team mate Kimi Raikkonen crashed on the first lap in Austria but finished second in Bahrain, was delivering everything the team had hoped for when he joined from Red Bull.
"I think Sebastian is doing a phenomenal job. I'm incredibly proud of the kid," he told reporters before the race. "I think the car is going to get better and better. Unfortunately we started late so we are making up lost ground but I feel relatively comfortable that by the time we hit Monza (Ferrari's home Italian GP in September) we are going to be in a much stronger position than we have been in all season."