Fred Vasseur backs Loic Serra: He arrived in a tough situation but is pushing Ferrari to the limit. Fred Vasseur has defended Loïc Serra’s early work at Ferrari.

Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur has defended the work of chassis technical director Loïc Serra, insisting the French engineer joined the Scuderia in a far-from-ideal situation but has already made a meaningful impact.

Ferrari and Loïc Serra’s first “real” season

Loïc Serra’s arrival at Ferrari at the end of 2024 as the team’s technical director was welcomed enthusiastically by Scuderia fans, especially after Enrico Cardile’s departure to Aston Martin earlier that year.

The French engineer, widely regarded as a tyre expert thanks to nearly three decades of experience with Michelin and Mercedes, was one of Fred Vasseur’s first major signings at Ferrari, alongside Lewis Hamilton.

Serra was able to begin contributing to the SF-25 project, but the car’s core concept had already been defined before he arrived at Maranello. Even so, he helped improve Ferrari’s organisation and operational approach behind the scenes.

Vasseur highlighted Serra’s contribution even during last season, despite the difficult context of working with a car that was neither conceived nor developed under his direct leadership.

That is why 2026 is expected to represent Serra’s first true season at Ferrari, with Fred Vasseur describing him as a genuine racer — someone constantly searching for performance in every aspect of the car and encouraging the team to pursue innovative solutions without fear of making mistakes.

Fred Vasseur’s comments

“When you join a Formula 1 team, you need a couple of months,” Fred Vasseur explained in an interview with The Race. “It is difficult to take ownership of a project when you were not involved from the beginning, when key decisions have already been made, all while other projects are also ongoing. The situation was not easy, but Loïc managed to focus on operations. And I think that was important for us.”

“At times, we did a very good job last year toward the end of the season in terms of management. That became the best preparation for this year. Loïc has huge experience in racing, at the track, but also in operations, thanks to his background at Michelin,” he added.

“I think that represents a step forward for us. He is a true racer, someone who chases the final fractions of a second everywhere. He has given the team a strong push.”