Observing and judging is a practice that also presents inherent difficulties, but it’s also an incredibly convenient action. You sit, watch, listen, form an idea, and give a verdict. Easy, right? The object of study has a tougher time, especially the one who actively makes decisions that concern their team, which are open to criticism from all sides. That’s how it goes in F1, that’s how it works at Ferrari.
Among the many tasks of a team principal, there’s also the management of the drivers, motivating and inspiring them. But there’s also the more challenging task: creating the operational context in which they can perform at their best for the team’s benefit. Simple enough, isn’t it? Well, no, it’s quite a complex job because there are incredibly heavy internal and external pressures to manage. Especially if you’re leading the red convoy that’s under everyone’s watchful eye.
F1, Ferrari: Which of the two driver management models is more useful?
There are two paradigms to consider when it comes to driver management. The first one is the approach adopted by Red Bull. Considering how things are going over in Milton Keynes, it’s clear they’ve managed the situation well, from the choice of drivers’ names to defining the common strategy.
Red Bull has chosen a single-pronged attack: Max Verstappen. The key point of this strategy is that the whole team focuses on the Dutch driver, aiming to gather every single point to give him an advantage over the others. The task of Sergio Pérez, or anyone else in his place, is to support him. The advantage of this approach is its clarity; it’s a strategy that, though cynical, is definitely clear and straightforward. The downside is the challenging management of the second driver’s dissatisfaction.
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Another way of managing drivers is the approach used by Mercedes. In this case, the track determines who is first and who is second. The German team allows Lewis Hamilton and George Russell to compete freely, just as it did with Valtteri Bottas and earlier with Nico Rosberg. The imperative is not to harm the team while maximizing points. Of course, this model holds until the standings dictate choices where one of them has to serve the other.
A variation of this framework is the Ferrari model, which, in some ways, seemed like an extreme version of the Mercedes system. Perhaps not because it was planned that way, but because the management of the pairing wasn’t flawless. In recent years, we’ve seen a bit too much freedom between the drivers, leading to some on-track issues. Correctives have been put in place under Fred Vasseur’s management, who, accused by certain media of being Charles Leclerc’s sponsor, emphasized that in Maranello, no distinctions are made about materials and opportunities provided, and the track is the judge that determines the hierarchy.
The ex-Sauber’s thought is summed up in a passage from a recent interview: “[…] If you want to aim for the driver’s championship, at a certain point in the season, you have to make a choice and favor those higher in the standings. However, we’re not in that situation now.”
Frédéric Vasseur has strongly rejected the idea that Charles Leclerc is the number one: “It’s not like that. I started this job 25 years ago believing that two drivers should receive the same support, and I have no intention of changing. All teams operate this way, except Red Bull with Verstappen and Perez.”
Fred Vasseur believes in this kind of policy despite the contractual situations of Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc being as similar as they are different. The Monegasque is about to renew, as we mentioned in a piece a few weeks ago, while Carlos Sainz, despite having Ferrari at the top of his preferences, has started to seriously look around to see if he can find the conditions elsewhere that truly put him at the center of the project as a pivot around which the team revolves, somewhat mutatis mutandis, similar to what’s happening at Red Bull with Max Verstappen.
Despite this apparent imbalance, Fred Vasseur doesn’t intend to deviate from his intentions. The reference paradigm is to start on completely equal footing, and this will remain the case in 2024 as well. Then the track will potentially determine who should be the second driver, who must have the strength and ability to serve his teammate. The Red Bull model, the one that Fred shies away from, can only work if the pairing is highly unbalanced.
This, while recognizing that the Monegasque possesses superior driving qualities to those of the Spaniard, doesn’t apply to Ferrari. At least not for the moment. So, Charles Leclerc will have to have the strength – and he definitely does – to earn the role of lead driver on the track. Only then will it be easier for Carlos Sainz to accept the less comfortable position of a “subordinate” driver.
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