Qualifying and race: two different stories
There is a mix of bitterness and satisfaction in the Ferrari camp at the end of Saturday in Baku, which started with Charles Leclerc‘s pole position in the first F1 qualifying shootout in history, but ended with the Monegasque driver finishing second in the Sprint race.
Despite achieving the team’s first podium of the 2023 Formula 1 season, the SF-23 suffered particularly due to both tire degradation and the Red Bull’s better race pace. Two aspects that were also confirmed by Frédéric Vasseur, Team Principal of the Maranello-based team.
Main challenges of the race
Interviewed by Sky Sport F1 at the end of the Sprint race, which also saw Carlos Sainz finish in fifth place, the French engineer explained what the main problems were during the race: “We pushed more than we expected in the first few laps to keep up with Sergio Perez – he said – but we need to understand where we can improve by tomorrow because it will be a different story, with at least two stints and different tire compounds, but we will try again. It will be different from today because we will use different tire compounds on a track with different temperatures, and we will also have to think about strategy.” – the French manager explained after the Azerbaijan Sprint Race.
“Degradation can hurt you more when you are behind another car, while when you have clean air, you can go better, and Carlos proved that. On Friday, we didn’t do a long stint in free practice, doing only three or four consecutive laps, and it’s also true that we didn’t test the medium tires at all. We only did it today, but it was the right tire for a short stint. We have confidence for tomorrow, but it will be another challenge. The pace had already improved in Melbourne, even though we couldn’t score points. The pace was good in qualifying, and it wasn’t bad in the race for Carlos, and now we have to put everything together and score points.” – the former Alfa Romeo boss pointed out.
Red Bull’s big advantage
According to Frederic Vasseur, there is potential to improve ahead of tomorrow’s race, although Ferrari will have to contend with a strength of Red Bull that particularly impressed the Italian side’s Team Principal:
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“Tomorrow, I think we will be more competitive than we were in Melbourne – he continued – the pace is there, we were on pole and we have progressed compared to Sakhir and Jeddah. We were ahead of Red Bull in qualifying, but in the race, it will be a challenge because they are ahead in top speed, which is crucial here. When Sergio Perez opened the DRS, he was a space rocket, and in a race like this, it is decisive. Tomorrow we will have another opportunity, with different tire compounds and strategies, and we will be fighting.” – he continued.
Opinion on parc fermé
Frederic Vasseur also gave his opinion on the new Sprint format, focusing in particular on the parc ferme aspect: “If there were a variation in the parc fermé regulation, we could prepare the car for qualifying and the race, but it would be very costly, and we have to keep an eye on costs,” he added. “However, it is also true that the parc ferme keeps the same car until Sunday, but I think the problem today was more about tire management.”
“We need to improve in this regard, especially in the first few laps. I haven’t talked to the drivers yet, but we’re fighting Red Bull and that’s the most important thing. Baku is not the most ideal circuit for us in terms of top speed, but we’ll try.” – the Ferrari team principal concluded.
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