Many thought, Benetton and Alesi included, that this could well be the Frenchman's year to seriously challenge for the title - something many had been predicting he would do since he signed for Ferrari in . However, after achieving the double of Drivers' and Constructors' Championships in , the 1996 season saw the team slip slightly from its position of eminence. A direct development of the B195, the new drivers found the B196 difficult to drive, as it had been designed with Schumacher's driving style in mind, but managed to score a series of points and podium finishes. The biggest disappointment was not winning a race for the first time since , although Alesi led in Monaco until he suffered a suspension failure, and Berger led in Germany until his engine failed with three laps remaining.