Ferrari team principal Frederic Vasseur has attempted to analyze Max Verstappen’s weaknesses and discussed the Italian side’s chances of beating Red Bull as early as this season.
Despite Red Bull’s strong start to the 2024 Formula 1 campaign, placing them clearly ahead of everyone else, Scuderia Ferrari can still be very satisfied with their own season start. One win, four podiums, and a solid second place in the constructors’ standings, only 21 points off the lead after the first four races, represent a performance that might even exceed pre-season expectations. The SF24, despite some issues in qualifying, has proven it can hold its own against the RB20 cars in races.
Nonetheless, thinking of overcoming a Max Verstappen in top form is no easy task. Ferrari boss Frederic Vasseur is aware of this, and during his appearance on Radio France’s sports program “L’esprit sport,” he tried to pinpoint the Dutch driver’s weaknesses: “He is the best, and the best driver attracts the best engineers, as if it were a positive spiral.”
“Our goal is to break this vicious cycle by getting as close as possible to put them under pressure. We need to push them to make mistakes, to take risks. In Australia, we showed that we could do it.” – the French manager pointed out.
“For me, Red Bull is an example to follow; I have a lot of respect for them. We will continue to push, aware of the fact that we have made some good progress.” – he added.
Discussing Scuderia Ferrari’s chances of beating Red Bull and the objectives for the rest of the 2024 Formula 1 season, the Frenchman commented: “We always want to win, even if Red Bull is faster. We must have the ambition to win races. That is the only way we have to best prepare for the weekends.”
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“The Monday after the win in Australia, everyone was happy, a situation opposite to last year. This is what I ask of the team: I want them to strive to improve continuously.” – Fred Vasseur concluded.
Scuderia Ferrari now heads to China with the ambition of challenging Red Bull for the victory on a circuit that, at least on paper, should be much more suitable to the characteristics of the SF24 than that of Suzuka. However, it remains to be seen how the new sprint format will impact the weekend, with teams having only 60 minutes of free practice to find the ideal setup for the double race.
Souce: f1ingenerale
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