Fred Vasseur has explained why Ferrari chose not to pit Lewis Hamilton during the Virtual Safety Car at the Italian Grand Prix, revealing that the SF-26’s straight-line speed deficit left the team unsure whether the seven-time world champion would have been able to repass Yuki Tsunoda and Pierre Gasly. The limitation did not merely cost Ferrari performance at Monza; it also reduced the strategic options available to the pit wall.
The difficult afternoon ultimately left the Ferrari team principal with a strong sense of disappointment after a home race in which the Scuderia had hoped to give the Tifosi much more. While the characteristics of Monza had always been expected to expose the SF-26, Fred Vasseur admitted that Ferrari nevertheless felt it had fallen short.
Ferrari’s Monza top-speed deficit restricted Lewis Hamilton’s strategy
The comparison with Ferrari’s rivals only amplified a weakness the team already knew about before arriving in Italy. The SF-26’s difficulties on Monza’s long straights had been one of the defining themes of the weekend, with the broader Ferrari straight-line deficit at the Italian Grand Prix affecting both racecraft and strategy.
“Honestly, it’s nothing new. We knew coming to Monza that it would be like this,” Fred Vasseur explained. “Then the circumstances of the race certainly didn’t help us.”
Kimi Antonelli faced a very different situation in the Mercedes. The Italian was able to stop and fight his way back through the field without encountering the same difficulties. Fred Vasseur highlighted the contrast with George Russell, pointing out that Kimi Antonelli had started from the back and overtaken his Mercedes team-mate twice.
“If you compare him with George Russell, Kimi Antonelli started from the back and passed him twice. I think the pace was huge,” the Ferrari team principal observed. “But beyond that, he also had the opportunity to stop because he had the top speed to overtake.”
That difference proved crucial when the Virtual Safety Car created an opportunity for teams to make a relatively inexpensive pit stop. Kimi Antonelli and Max Verstappen took advantage, while Ferrari kept Lewis Hamilton on track.
Why Ferrari did not pit Lewis Hamilton under the VSC
The reasoning was directly linked to Ferrari’s lack of straight-line performance. Had Lewis Hamilton stopped, the team calculated that he would have emerged behind Yuki Tsunoda and Pierre Gasly. With overtaking already particularly difficult for the SF-26, Ferrari could not be confident that fresh tyres would compensate for the track position surrendered.
“In our case, if we had stopped, we would have found ourselves behind Yuki Tsunoda and Pierre Gasly, and I’m not sure we would have managed to overtake them,” Fred Vasseur explained.
The strategic restriction therefore became another consequence of the same performance weakness. Ferrari could not simply react to the VSC in the way Mercedes or Red Bull could because the potential cost of dropping into traffic was much greater. That problem was especially significant at a circuit where the SF-26 Power Unit and energy deployment were already under intense scrutiny.
“When you have this kind of deficit, you have to take risks or try to find alternatives with the strategy,” Fred Vasseur added. “But you can’t always make them work.”
Kimi Antonelli’s ability to recover demonstrated exactly why outright performance can expand the choices available to a strategy team. The Mercedes driver had enough pace and top speed to sacrifice track position during a stop with confidence that he could attack afterwards. Ferrari did not have the same margin with Lewis Hamilton.
The difference became even more visible when Kimi Antonelli overtook the Ferrari during his recovery, a moment that also produced a notable reaction from the home crowd as the Tifosi watched Kimi Antonelli pass Lewis Hamilton at Monza.
Fred Vasseur plans talks after Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton clash
Ferrari’s problems began well before the strategic phase of the Grand Prix. The opening lap immediately complicated the team’s race, with Charles Leclerc losing ground after the battle with Lewis Hamilton through the first chicane.
Fred Vasseur did not want to assign responsibility immediately after the race, preferring to wait until Ferrari could review the incident properly during its internal debrief.
“The outcome of Turns 1 and 2 wasn’t positive for the team,” Fred Vasseur acknowledged. “If the question now is whether there will be a team order or something like that, I think it’s still too early.”
The question of how Ferrari manages its two drivers has become increasingly significant as the season develops, particularly after the latest Monza tension between Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton.
Fred Vasseur referred to McLaren’s approach during the previous season as an example of why teams are reluctant to impose a hierarchy too early. “Last year Oscar Piastri was ahead at this point of the season and, if McLaren had put everything behind Oscar Piastri, Max Verstappen would have been champion,” he stated.
Nevertheless, the Ferrari team principal accepted that there eventually comes a stage when a team has to make a choice. “At some point you have to make a decision,” he continued. “But I think it was too early to do it before Monza. Now we’ll have time to discuss it.”
For Fred Vasseur, the difficulty lies in balancing the freedom to race with the responsibility to protect Ferrari’s overall result. Losing points because of an internal fight is never desirable, but imposing restrictions too early can also compromise the principle of allowing both drivers to compete on equal terms.
“For a team, it’s never nice to lose points,” Fred Vasseur explained. “At the start of the season, I think every team principal in the world would like to let them race and only freeze the positions when necessary. When you are the team principal, it’s not an easy choice. You do it for the team and for the final result.”
Fred Vasseur congratulates Kimi Antonelli after Monza victory
Despite Ferrari’s own disappointment in front of its home supporters, Fred Vasseur was keen to recognise Kimi Antonelli’s success. The Mercedes driver converted his strong pace and overtaking capability into victory, and the Ferrari team principal had no hesitation in congratulating him.
“I’m mega happy for Kimi Antonelli,” Fred Vasseur said. “He deserved it, and congratulations to him.”
The French manager is now determined to prevent Ferrari from allowing one difficult weekend to trigger an excessive reaction. He stressed that fluctuations in competitiveness are inevitable over the course of a Formula 1 season and that the Scuderia must quickly redirect its attention towards the next challenge.
“We will have ups and downs during the season, and we must not react in this way,” Fred Vasseur insisted. “Tomorrow morning we will be back at the factory, we will prepare for Madrid and we will arrive there with all the energy necessary to get a good result.”
Ferrari disappointment amplified by the Tifosi at Monza
The emotional weight of the result was nevertheless impossible to ignore. Fred Vasseur had repeatedly tried to describe Monza as a normal race during the build-up, but he admitted afterwards that Ferrari’s home Grand Prix could never truly be treated like any other weekend.
“Monza for us, even though I spent the week saying it was a normal race, is not, as you can imagine,” Fred Vasseur acknowledged. “With all the Tifosi here this weekend, we expected to give them something different, as a big thank you for the support and enthusiasm they showed us.”
That inability to deliver the result Ferrari wanted for its supporters was at the heart of the disappointment. “We all feel that we failed at something, but I’m sure we will come back next week and be much stronger,” the Ferrari team principal added.
Ferrari turns towards Madrid after difficult Italian GP
Madrid will now provide the first opportunity to discover whether Ferrari can immediately move away from the particularly unfavourable characteristics it encountered at Monza. The next round on the 2026 Formula 1 calendar should present a layout that is somewhat better suited to the package Ferrari currently has, although Fred Vasseur is not yet willing to establish firm expectations.
“It’s far too early to think about Madrid and have expectations. I first need to digest the weekend,” Fred Vasseur explained. “Certainly, the track layout probably suits what we have today a little better, and we can expect something more next week. But first, let me digest this weekend.”
That leaves Ferrari with two immediate priorities after Monza: understanding how to manage the competitive relationship between Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton, and ensuring that the SF-26’s weaknesses do not restrict strategic flexibility to the same extent at the next Grand Prix. After a painful home weekend, Madrid will offer the Scuderia an early chance to respond.
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