Two pole positions, a third and a fifth place. That was Ferrari’s tally from the last race weekend in Azerbaijan. The event held on the streets of Baku will not only be remembered for the new format that introduced the qualifying shootout (this is not the place to question Liberty Media’s decision, which was approved by the teams), but also for the Maranello team’s first positive weekend of the 2023 Formula 1 championship.
In fact, Maranello has given the first answers regarding the performance of the SF-23 after the disappointing races in Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, and Australia, thus achieving the first podium placement of Frederic Vasseur’s management, secured thanks to a superb drive by Charles Leclerc.
With 26 points collected in the first three races, Ferrari left Azerbaijan with 36 points in its pocket, allowing the Italian side to reach 62 points and thus get back on track and chip away at Aston Martin’s and Mercedes’ points, the main rivals of the Prancing Horse in the fight for second place in the Constructors’ Championship, since Red Bull’s dominance is too big to allow any glimpse of hope for the World Championship.
In Baku, Ferrari gave some first timid signals, showing an improved car compared to the previous month. Certainly, we will have to wait for the proof in the Miami event, where higher temperatures are expected than in Baku, which could affect tire wear, but above all, the first important updates on the SF-23 are expected.
“The podium in Baku is a stone on which to build a new part of the season.” These are Frederic Vasseur’s words that tend to mark a before and after for the 2023 Formula 1 campaign of the Prancing Horse. But what is accompanying Ferrari is not only work aimed at improving on-track performance this season, but also laying solid foundations for the future.
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Slowly but surely, thanks also to the approval of the management, Fred Vasseur is shaping the future Ferrari, which involves the inclusion of various professional figures. The French manager himself, interviewed by the press, admitted that Maranello “is carrying out a massive recruitment process, even if we are not communicating it. We are doing it step by step because you can’t set up an organization in two weeks.” After David Sanchez left and as Laurent Mekies is about to leave, two important pieces of the previous Mattia Binotto’s management, Fred Vasseur began to look around but without raising his voice. In a pragmatic way, as it should be. The time for loud proclamations is over, now only facts count because words are worth nothing.
Among the figures locked in by Maranello, there are at least two coming from Red Bull. The Frenchman’s goal is clearly to lay the foundations for a competitive Prancing Horse in the medium-long term. It cannot be otherwise, with gardening that will require these new figures to start their work officially within the walls of Maranello no earlier than 2024. Therefore, with the car already defined, made, and finished, the first real feedback will be possible in 2025. That’s why it will take time to judge the work of the new team led by Fred Vasseur, who step by step is shaping the team in his own image and likeness after arriving in Maranello on tiptoes.
Certainly, there is an important change in trend compared to the past. In the recent past, Ferrari used to promote people from within, but now they are looking for expertise outside the company. The horizontal model, launched by the late president Sergio Marchionne, has now been dismantled. Like other teams (including Aston Martin), Ferrari is implementing the strategy of taking resources away from the competition to try to improve its own skills, as happened in the days of Jean Todt.
Fans hope that those glorious years can return, but it is clear that this cannot happen immediately. Fred Vasseur doesn’t have a magic wand. However, at least a wind of change is beginning to be felt around Maranello.
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