Ferrari performance declines since Fred Vasseur contract renewal, warns former F1 champion. Former F1 champion Jacques Villeneuve criticizes Ferrari.

Ferrari struggles intensify after Fred Vasseur contract extension, says former driver

Departures, contract renewals, new developments, and resulting disappointments—Ferrari’s summer has been full of events that, for better or worse, have impacted the current season while also shaping the team’s outlook for the future, particularly 2026. Among the most notable events was undoubtedly the multi-year contract extension of team principal Frédéric Vasseur during the Hungarian Grand Prix weekend. Many believed that, with the renewed stability in the team, Scuderia Ferrari appeared poised to fight for the season victory—only for Charles Leclerc to experience a dramatic drop in performance during the final stint, falling from first to fourth place and adding yet another disappointment to an already challenging season.

The downturn in the Netherlands

A setback that was hard to digest, and one that Maranello has struggled to recover from with better results. After the summer break, the Dutch Grand Prix brought a double retirement due to incidents for both Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc, while Monza saw the team fail to reach even the minimum target of a podium finish. Furthermore, the most recent weekend in Azerbaijan produced yet another setback for the Scuderia, with their drivers finishing in an anonymous eighth and ninth place. The disappointing result was caused by a failed qualifying session that effectively “grounded the wings” of the Ferrari drivers, combined with setup errors that prevented the cars from being competitive enough to fight back.

Villeneuve speaks out

This deeply negative trend was directly addressed in a recent interview with OLBG by 1997 Formula 1 World Champion Jacques Villeneuve. The Canadian expressed his strong opinion that Ferrari currently lacks clear direction and that Fred Vasseur’s contract renewal has not helped the team grow, and may even have contributed to its decline.

“There was the big announcement of Vasseur’s extension, and the team has collapsed since it was confirmed. Since then, the team has been on a downward slope. Monza was supposed to be the perfect weekend for Ferrari, and it wasn’t. In the past, Baku has been a fantastic track for Leclerc, and this year it was one of their worst weekends. Ferrari is completely lost now and needs direction. Next year will be a fresh start for everyone, which is perfect for Ferrari, as I believe they are focusing 100% on 2026,” Jacques Villeneuve said.