In Ferrari, has there been an impact from Frederic Vasseur or not? To be even clearer: has anything changed since the Frenchman took command of the somewhat battered Maranello battleship? These questions have been bothering Ferrari fans for a while, and given the many races and almost curtain calls of the 2023 Formula One season, there are now elements to draw a balance that, while certainly not definitive, is already supported by numbers, results, data, and statistics.
And fans are in good company in asking these introductory questions. Also because a “positive answer” to these questions determines the near (and distant) future of the Scuderia in the premier motorsport category, Formula 1. If the project for the next year goes wrong, it will be discussed until 2026, the next regulatory change. Too much, even for the most ardent fans. Someone, superstitiously, is beginning to wonder if they will live long enough to see another driver’s title after the one, now very distant, dated 2007 with Kimi Raikkonen.
Recently, in one of his podcasts dedicated to F1, the well-known Italian journalist Giorgio Terruzzi asked the same question and gave himself a discouraging answer. I quote his words: “Have we seen any new ingredients for improvement with Fred Vasseur’s arrival? Ferrari makes the same strategic mistakes, secures poles, and doesn’t win races, people leave Maranello, and no one arrives, and the pre or post-race statements from the team principal are almost surreal.
“It seems to me a very negative balance. I don’t understand how a leader can say, ‘This team needs to improve.’ Where is he? He criticizes the strategies, but where is he when they are decided? He promised the arrival of buses of qualified people in Maranello, but there are no announcements.”
Unfortunately, it’s hard to disagree with Giorgio Terruzzi. However, let’s start with things that certainly did not depend on Fred Vasseur’s will. A car clearly designed in a wrong direction, irreparably old, impossible to develop decently, with evident suspension and aerodynamic limitations (see the wobbly front and ground effect management).
Ferrari: Fred Vasseur and the human capital
In short, we can say that the Ferrari SF-23 has highlighted and chronicled the limits of the F1-75 in tire management. It has become faster on the straight, consistently producing strong qualifying laps, as confirmed by pole positions, but equally quickly in the race, it is swallowed up by competitors. It’s disheartening to hear the pit wall instructing drivers to manage tires continuously on the “mysterious” Pirelli tires… it’s depressing…
It is true that, to date, the Prancing Horse is the only team capable of winning a race, aside from the Red Bull steamroller. However, it was a completely episodic case where the stars aligned. It is clear that if you have a ready car, as a team principal, there’s not much you can do. You can intervene in work methodologies at the factory and on the pit wall, in the chain of command, in placing the right people, in the procedures to follow.
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In short, all those things that fall under what I call “human capital.” And even here, you are overwhelmed by discouragement. And if it is indeed true that Frederic Vasseur found the team ready as it is and needed and needs time to fine-tune it, some positive signals were expected during the current racing campaign.
Ferrari: Vasseur’s trajectory could and should have been better
Let’s see: strategic mistakes have been made this year as well. But fewer. Or perhaps less evident also because nothing significant was at stake. Indeed, often the fight was in the rear of the front-runners. And this is also a fact. It is another fact that often in race management, there are the same limitations, the same rigidity, and lack of flexibility that characterized Mattia Binotto‘s management.
The only aspect that has improved on average is pit stops. And not always. There have been bold proclamations, followed almost always by shipwrecks or planetary embarrassments. And the famous shopping spree, for now, we know little or nothing about it. Wrapped in the mists of the Po Valley. Furthermore, we had key departures like David Sanchez and Laurent Mekies. And we even discovered that Inaki Rueda still has some role in Maranello.
In short, Ferrari seems to have completely lost its way to success. And among insiders and fans, it is clear that there are no good feelings for the coming year. We already know that the ’24 car will be a clear break with the past. Good. But not great. Because who assures us that it will be enough? Enrico Cardile will have to do “everything.” And here too, doubts arise…
The potential superstars that were rumored, thanks to gardening, could be operational in 2025, certainly not next year. Happy, of course, to be proven wrong, but we really don’t feel like being optimistic. On the power unit side: powerful but still not entirely reliable, and with the management of the hybrid part improved but still not at the level of Honda.
Also, what is frightening is that Ferrari often has breakdowns that, small and large, in an era and with regulations that prevent anything, then pay a high price in the race. And here the issue of “quality control” arises. To get back to the point, I still think that without quality human capital, you don’t get anywhere.
Recently, Jean Todt stated that his team won precisely because there was continuity. At that point, Mattia Binotto’s inconsolable widows did the “wave” as if they were at the Maracanã. But Monsieur Jean’s is a half-truth. He had a president above him who knew what F1 was, and below him were Ross Brawn, Rory Byrne, Aldo Costa, and so on. A team that didn’t immediately become a dream team but had growth year by year, culminating in a certain Michael Schumacher.
Now, with all the goodwill we have for Ferrari, it doesn’t seem to us that there are people who, since 2014, have managed to prove they are among the best. Technically they may be valid, but they are not among the top performers. Not to mention the pit wall, the real and gigantic question mark of this Ferrari.
And even here, in short, Fred Vasseur shouts, speaks clearly, makes sometimes ruthless analyses but in terms of results… little or nothing. The truth is that continuity in mediocrity, we repeat and will repeat until we’re exhausted, will never lead to victory (if not sporadic) or a fight for a championship. Therefore, let’s cross our fingers and light a candle in church. Ferrari red, of course…
Source: Mariano Froldi for FUnoanalisitecnica
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