Fred Vasseur eyes a dramatic end to the F1 season, buoyed by Ferrari’s recent victory at Monza.
Fred Vasseur acknowledged that keeping his composure during the final laps of the Italian Grand Prix was challenging. The Ferrari director witnessed Charles Leclerc leading and tried not to think about the worst-case scenarios, such as Oscar Piastri catching up or a mechanical failure.
“I was always trying to avoid that! We calculated what we could afford to lose to Piastri each lap, setting a target for Charles, and just before the last lap, we could say ‘okay, now we are safe,'” Vasseur stated.
“Because by the last lap we had about four seconds, and then we started thinking about reliability! But I tried to stay focused—it’s not always easy, but it’s the most important thing, not to think too much about the podium.”
The Frenchman recognizes that this victory is significant for Leclerc and Ferrari, but he reminds us that it is just another race in terms of points. However, the enthusiasm of the tifosi is unmatched.
“For Ferrari and for Charles, winning in Monaco, winning in Monza—I think these are probably, along with Imola, the two or three races you want to win in the season. But, in the end, you don’t score more points in Monza than in Baku.”
“Mathematically speaking, it’s a victory, emotionally speaking, it’s very significant because we had huge support from the beginning of the week from the tifosi, starting Monday at the Maranello factory.”
“We already had many people in front of the entrance, and the best way to reciprocate is to win. But it’s not easy, it’s not always under our control, but it was certainly a good way for the team to thank them for their support.”
“The first time eight drivers can win”
Vasseur is not yet ready to discuss the championships, especially the constructors’ championship: “I think it would be a big mistake to draw conclusions or change the plan after the win at Monza. The road is very long to Abu Dhabi, with something like 450 points still in play.”
“It’s so tight, the fight—honestly, I’ve spent a few years on the pit wall, but this is the first time, I think, in F1 that we have this situation where eight drivers can win the race, without any accidents or retirements.”
“Four teams can win or get on the podium, and it changes from one session to another. For me, the most impressive weekend was probably Spa, where you had a McLaren in FP1, Red Bull in FP2, we started from pole and Mercedes won the race.”
“And it feels almost like that everywhere, except for Lando who dominated last weekend in Zandvoort. But one can expect, I think until the end of the season, that it will be like this, a huge battle.”
“And it’s true that with eight cars of this level of competitiveness, a team can score a one-two finish and also end up seventh and eighth. I don’t want to talk about retirements, but it can make a huge difference in terms of points. Let’s focus first on Baku. We’ll see as we go along.”
Vasseur explains that Scuderia was expecting a resurgence after the Netherlands, on more suitable tracks: “Zandvoort was tough for us, for various reasons, and I was convinced that the next three events would probably be a bit better.”
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Vasseur Foresees Fierce Title Battle to Finish Vasseur Foresees Fierce Title Battle to Finish
