Scuderia Ferrari team principal Frederic Vasseur does not hide his anger and disappointment after a result well below expectations in the 2023 Formula 1 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix at the Jeddah Corniche Circuit, with Carlos Sainz finishing in sixth place, ahead of his Maranello teammate Charles Leclerc, following a poor race pace especially on the hard tyres.
Interviewed by Sky Sport at the end of the race, the French manager explained: “It’s not what we expected, now we have to analyze the situation. The first stint was good: Charles managed to come back from twelfth place to sixth and Carlos got stuck behind Stroll. In the last part of the race with the hard tires we had a poor pace, and we have to understand where it comes from because it’s not acceptable”. – Frederic Vasseur pointed out.
“We still believe in our philosophy and design, because it’s not possible for the car to be on the front row in qualifying and disappear during the race. It’s a setup problem, not a concept one.” – he continued.
When asked how the team will deal with the disappointment after another poor performance, Fred Vasseur replied: “It’s my job to manage both the ups and downs. We have to analyze the situation well and keep fighting, push all together to recover. We can’t give up now.”
Show your support for Scuderia Ferrari with official merchandise collection! Click here to enter the F1 online Store and shop securely! And also get your F1 tickets for every race with VIP hospitality and unparalleled insider access. Click here for the best offers to support Charles and Carlos from the track!
One bright side: Charles Leclerc’s performance
“A positive side is Charles’ performance, even if I don’t want to tell lies to myself or reason with “if”. Today yes, he would have been on the front row, but in any case we didn’t have pace with the hard tyres and we need to understand why. We also made a step forward in qualifying, gaining on Mercedes and Aston Martin. However, the weekend doesn’t end with qualifying, and in the race we lose against them”, concluded the Ferrari Team Principal following the 2023 Formula 1 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.
