Ferrari Emulates Red Bull’s Key Strength, Vasseur Claims

Ferrari looks to Red Bull for inspiration as Vasseur pushes the team beyond its comfort zone.

Fred Vasseur has opted to draw on Red Bull’s successful strategies to advance Ferrari’s performance. The Scuderia’s team principal has decided to adopt a more aggressive approach in managing the team to gain marginal performance improvements.

“We have become more aggressive,” the Frenchman told Auto Motor und Sport. “For me, this fundamental shift in attitude has had a greater impact than anything else. It means daring to step out of our comfort zone.”

“Whether it’s the amount of fuel needed for the race, the weight, cooling, or car settings. In my view, this is one of Red Bull’s greatest strengths.”

Vasseur acknowledges that Ferrari is taking more risks, which can sometimes be costly, but he welcomes the evolution in the team’s culture and its learning to push boundaries.

“Yes, but it also sharpens the senses. For example, if you want to push the weight to the limit, you need to think very carefully beforehand about the weight the car will lose during the race due to chassis wear, tyre wear, brake wear, and oil consumption.”

“We’re learning to push the limits in every area. If the result is three kilos and you take four, you’ve already lost weight. The same goes for cooling. I can open the bodywork a notch more than the limit. Then I have a comfortable, worry-free life.”

“Depending on the circumstances, I may need to manage a bit more here and there during the race, but the key is that it costs less than it yields. Every extra kilo, every degree less than necessary, costs you three-hundredths of a second. In total, you’ve lost a tenth.”

“That could move you up three places on the starting grid. When you work at the limit, you need to think more. The more attention you pay to an issue, the more precise your work becomes. This reflection extends into all other areas.”

“Of course, you expose yourself to the risk of making mistakes. If things go badly, you just need to slow down a bit to stay within the limits, otherwise you risk disqualification. But that’s the price to pay if you want to be at the forefront. That’s also the vision of our competitors.”

“When the field is this balanced, you can’t afford to leave anything on the table. That’s why I take responsibility for my mistakes. If they occur because we’ve been aggressive, I accept them. If they’re due to negligence, that’s another matter.”

He also points out that teams are constantly seeking and often reaching the limits in pursuit of marginal gains in performance: “On one hand, we are convinced, and it’s clear that for a tenth or a tenth and a half, you completely change the complexion of the weekend.”

“We are all striving to bring parts, and you know that the correlation between what we do in the factory and the results on the track is not straightforward. It hasn’t been easy for Mercedes, it hasn’t been easy for us, it hasn’t been easy for other teams since the start of the season.”

However, sheer performance isn’t necessarily the most crucial aspect when it comes to finding those last one or two tenths of a second: “And we are also at the limit of development. We have had the same regulations for four years now.”

“And we are reaching a sort of performance asymptote. It is becoming increasingly difficult to chase down the last tenth of a second, we are a bit more on the limit. This is true for everyone. It’s vital to acknowledge that the rebound is key.”

It’s not just a matter of performance, but crucially a matter of driver confidence. If you gain a tenth through aerodynamic support, you lose three tenths due to either the confidence or consistency of the drivers.”