Team orders caused tension in Miami, but Ferrari boss Vasseur insists strategy was fair and handled swiftly between both drivers.
Fred Vasseur chose not to stir the pot after a tense finish between Ferrari drivers at the Miami Grand Prix, even as Lewis Hamilton’s frustration was caught loud and clear over team radio.
While Hamilton’s back-and-forth with his race engineer became one of the weekend’s standout moments, the Ferrari team principal remained unfazed. For him, it was simply strategy at work.
“It might sound strange, but we did our job,” Vasseur.
“Lewis was on mediums, Charles on hards, so Lewis had a better chance of catching Antonelli ahead. We asked them to switch positions. Our internal rule is clear: if the overtaking driver can’t catch the car in front, we reverse the order.”
Ferrari did exactly that, twice.
“We lost maybe half a lap, a full lap at most. But very few teams even attempt that kind of coordination mid-race.”
When asked how such decisions are made, Vasseur explained it’s always a team call.
“First, I talk with the engineers. Of course, there’s always room for debate, but we executed the plan. Asking both Charles and Lewis to switch places mid-race isn’t easy, but they did it. I spoke with Lewis afterwards. He was frustrated. He felt we could’ve acted sooner. But in the end, that didn’t define our weekend.”
Ferrari’s final result? P7 and P8, not where they want to be.
“Even if Lewis was P3 in the Sprint, we can’t be happy finishing seventh and eighth today. Our qualifying pace just isn’t good enough. We had to use worn tyres for our best lap, that cost us time and track position. Starting from P8 and P12 makes things very hard. We need to fix that, fast.”
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Hamilton Fumes, Vasseur Calm as Ferrari Order Sparks Talk Hamilton Fumes, Vasseur Calm as Ferrari Order Sparks Talk
