Ferrari the second force at Suzuka
Being happy with a third and fourth place is possible. At Scuderia Ferrari, there is no complacency, but relative joy for having consolidated their role as the second force even on a track that put them to a tough test in 2023, like Suzuka. The SF-24 has halved the disadvantage from Red Bull and won the duel with McLaren, and team principal Frederic Vasseur – who knows how to put things in perspective – must underline the enormous progress in pace detected from the first tests, which are now a certainty. Now, paradoxically, there is a need to improve on Saturdays to avoid “inventing” strategies like the one that allowed Charles Leclerc to move from eighth to fourth position, behind Carlos Sainz.
Fred Vasseur’s comments
“I think it went well for both drivers, both in terms of strategy and tire management. If we missed something during the weekend, it was yesterday, but today went very well. Carlos had a solid race, and Charles made an excellent recovery from eighth position; it was a great team effort,” he said to Sky Sport F1. “I believe the fastest strategy was the two-stops, we decided to change Charles’s mainly because of his track position rather than traffic. I don’t think second place was possible, even though we lost ground at the start behind Lando Norris to avoid the dirty air. Overall, it went very well, and I think the strategy was the right one.” – the French manager added.
“Today, the degradation was under control, and we weren’t far from making the fastest lap, so it means that this part of the weekend wasn’t bad. We need to improve a bit in qualifying, it’s almost the opposite situation compared to last year. Without a doubt, we need to improve on Saturday, with Charles as well, because in the race it becomes more difficult when you start from eighth place compared to when you start from the front row, and this will be the goal for China.” – he pointed out.
The Frenchman explained how the decision to let Carlos Sainz pass Charles Leclerc in the final stages of the Japanese Grand Prix was very simple to make: “The two drivers were not on the same strategy, so Charles and Carlos had a 1.5 seconds difference in potential when they found themselves close, and there wasn’t even a fight. I’m convinced that Carlos’s strategy was the better one, but Charles’s was good too. So far, we are very focused on the car we have to make the most of our package. At the moment, we are not at an optimal level; we need to focus on the setup, on tire management, and then we will be able to bring updates at more suitable times of the season.” – the Ferrari team principal concluded.
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