In an interview with Blick, Frederic Vasseur reflects on a disappointing 2020 Formula 1 season:
Corona started as the 21st car in the field in all 17 races. How safe was your team?
Fréderic Vasseur: Unfortunately, this virus was on pole position every time. But the FIA and FOM (Formula One Management) solved the task with safety concepts. Luckily we made ends meet. I think we didn’t even have five positive cases at home in Hinwil. In five months.
How often have you been tested?
Well over 50 times.
Did Corona also have a positive side?
Yes, we were the first sport in the world to be active again. In addition, the virus has welded us together as a collective. We used to discuss and argue for ten years about a budget cap. Now that has just been approved.
In 2019 Raikkonen and Giovinazzi got 57 World Championship points. Now there were eight – or 99 fewer than the team before you, Alpha Tauri-Honda. What went wrong?
First, it’s not just about good or bad. We did a good job globally, but of course the results shocked us. There was a kind of hectic rush, we tried to react in all departments. When we woke up it was too late. But even ten months ago we didn’t have a good feeling during the tests in Barcelona. We knew the new rules would hit the Ferrari engine hard. But or reliability shows that we have done a good job. Thanks to the team!
Let’s not talk around the bush. The main culprit was the poor Ferrari engine?
That is your interpretation, but I cannot disagree with you very much.
Let’s say that 80 percent of the team slipped into a crisis because of Ferrari.
I don’t know how many percent it was. But we lost 0.3 to 0.4 seconds per lap to our rivals.
That could mean five or six starting places.
Correct. And the second half showed how big the problems the Italians were, when we fought against the works team and even finished ahead of them in Abu Dhabi! Apart from the reliability, we couldn’t be satisfied with the results – but this year must have been a disaster for Ferrari.
How long does the contract with Ferrari run? Since the World Cup third McLaren is no longer on the road with Renault engines but now with Mercedes power, the French still have some hybrid drives left.
We are tied to Ferrari until the end of 2021. Then we have to go over the books, because the next contract should be concluded from 2022 to 2026 because of the new cars.
With Ferrari?
You can never say that. It’s like a marriage. Nobody guarantees that you will stay with the same woman forever – like me (laughs). In a partnership you always have to consider that there are ups and downs … So we have to ask ourselves: what is the best deal? Until now, Ferrari has mostly been a solid partner.
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