Ferrari, Fred Vasseur explains Singapore qualifying issue: “It wasn’t about the tire blankets”. Fred Vasseur explains issue encountered by Ferrari in qualifying for Singapore GP.

Ferrari finished the Singapore weekend with a fifth and seventh place. A positive result considering the fifth row on the starting grid, but not up to the expectations before the race. However, Fred Vasseur chooses to see the glass half full, also explaining the episode that cost them a potential front row in qualifying. The Team Principal of the Prancing Horse also looks to the future, hinting at more updates coming in the next race in Austin.

Sunday’s satisfactions
“It’s always nice to end the weekend on a positive note, and today we had a good race,” Fred Vasseur begins. “On the other hand, having a race like this just increases the frustration after a negative Saturday. However, I prefer to be frustrated on Sunday evening after a bad Saturday but a good race, rather than being frustrated due to a bad race. I think finishing like this is also good to approach the three to four weeks break with a high spirit.”

The Team Principal highlights the close race pace between Leclerc and Norris in the final laps, with all the necessary caveats: “I don’t know if Lando was pushing at full pace in the last 20 laps, but our pace was similar and that’s encouraging. […] Maybe he was alternating slow and fast laps to recharge the batteries and go for the best time; I wasn’t paying attention. At least the pace was similar, even though today’s goal wasn’t to match Lando but to recover and score points.”

The qualifying problems
Fred Vasseur acknowledges that the expectations before the race were for a better result: “On Friday, we were in better shape than a fifth and seventh place. It means we lost something during the weekend, that’s clear. If you start ninth and tenth in Singapore, you know you did something wrong on Saturday. We shouldn’t blame anything or anyone on Sunday. It’s about doing a better job in qualifying.”

“I’m not sure, but I think in Q2 we were second, about a tenth behind or something like that. In Q3, we then had only one lap available because of the red flag, and we wasted that opportunity. On the other hand, when you’re fighting for a tenth, you’re looking for every extra kilometer per hour. We made a mistake in turn 1, and that’s how it went. I don’t want to blame anyone, but it’s part of the game. We need to stay focused.”

Right after the qualifying session, Charles Leclerc complained about the tires being too cold coming out of the pits. Frederic Vasseur clarifies what happened: “I don’t think it had anything to do with the tire blankets. When we were about to leave the pits, everyone was playing games, as no one wanted to be first or last. We pretended to pull the car out of the garage, everyone copied each other, and we stopped for a while at the exit. Then we almost completely regained temperature, but it’s true that we reached turn 2 with tires that weren’t in optimal condition, though just slightly. Once again, there was only one lap available, and you’re trying to get that last kilometer per hour. If in the end [on the grid] you find yourself a row behind those ahead, you regret not pushing harder. I spoke with Charles about it; it’s part of the game.” – the French manager pointed out at the end of the Singapore Grand Prix.

Looking towards Austin
In conclusion, the Team Principal looks ahead to the next race in Texas, commenting on rumors about new updates coming to the car: “We all know that we’ve already started developing next year’s car. We’ll try to do our best to have some small updates for the next race. I believe they will be the last for everyone. They’ll help us, but it will be the same for the other teams. In the last six races, we’ve seen such a tight battle that every single part can make a difference.”