Following lengthy discussions behind the scenes, during the Hungarian Grand Prix weekend, it was confirmed that Sports Director Laurent Mekies will be leaving Ferrari to head to Faenza, where he will take on the role of Team Principal at AlphaTauri, replacing Franz Tost.
The departure of the Frenchman is part of an internal revolution that has seen figures like aerodynamics chief David Sanchez also leaving for McLaren, along with other behind-the-scenes names. However, the most significant change came at the beginning of the year when Fred Vasseur took charge of the team, replacing former Team Principal Mattia Binotto.
One of his main tasks was to strengthen the team with key hires, which has proven to be a complex process, requiring time not only to convince personnel from other teams to join Maranello but also to wait for the gardening period to expire.
Fred Vasseur has already secured Loic Serra from Mercedes, though the latter may not be able to start working until 2025 due to contractual commitments with the Brackley-based team. However, this is just the first step, and the Ferrari Team Principal is seeking to build a more competitive team, attracting engineers from rival teams.
The aim is to transform the team step by step, giving it a new image, although some key figures will remain central to Fred Vasseur’s vision, starting with Enrico Cardile: “We are far from having a perfect structure.”
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“We must always improve and change things. If you stick with the same structure for two consecutive years, you’re done, because everyone else will improve. It means I don’t have a clear picture to say I must do this and that’s it, and it will work. That would be foolish. In the coming weeks, months, and years, we will make changes, as some topics take longer than others. But it’s an evolution and constant improvement.” – he explained.
During this Formula 1 season, Ferrari has begun to modify the concept of its car, moving away from the ideas that formed the basis of the F1-75 and SF-23 to approach the concepts seen on other rival cars. As the Maranello team starts to understand the weaknesses of the current car, Fred Vasseur says they are beginning to understand the direction to take in designing the future 2024 Formula 1 car, especially as attention begins to gradually shift to the following year.
“Yes, we are starting to have a much clearer idea of the situation and where we are weak and, on the other hand, our strengths. But I’ll keep that to myself. I’m sorry! But certainly, race after race, we are starting to have a much clearer picture of the situation.” – he continued.
Meanwhile, despite the smile left by the podium finish at the 7.004-kilometre Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps in Stavelot, the Team Principal stressed the importance of staying grounded, especially as the competitive landscape changes from week to week. The key will be to continue making progress and find more consistency: “I would remain very calm because we had the same meeting [with the press] a week ago [in Hungary], and it seemed like the end of the world, McLaren was flying, and we were stupid, and so on. From one week to the next, today McLaren is behind, while we are ahead.” – the French manager pointed out.
“It means we must stay calm, race after race. We know that the group is very close together and that you can go from second to eleventh place due to one or two things. And it’s not the end of the season; we still have a lot to do. But certainly, it was positive to end the first part of the season on a positive note [with the podium]. At least we will have the two-week break with a positive race in mind.” – the Ferrari boss concluded.
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