Fred Vasseur: “We would have gladly taken second on Thursday, now let’s confirm progress in Spain”. Ferrari team principal Frederic Vasseur reflects on Leclerc's second-place finish in Monaco.

Ferrari finishes second in Monaco
Given the initial expectations, Ferrari can consider itself satisfied with the results of the Monaco GP. The Maranello team secured a podium with Charles Leclerc and a top-five with Lewis Hamilton, collecting 28 points—a haul that seemed unthinkable after qualifying in Imola. There was nothing more that could be done in Monte Carlo, especially against a McLaren that clearly showed its superiority with Lando Norris, who pulled away from Leclerc as soon as he found clean air ahead.

Fred Vasseur’s words
Team principal Frederic Vasseur commented on today’s results: “On Thursday we would have signed for second place. It’s true that after being first in all free practice sessions we expected more and were a bit frustrated after qualifying, but today we did our job and overtaking was practically impossible,” he told Sky Sport F1. “With a penalty hanging over Lewis, we only had the car to rotate with the McLarens and that put us a bit against the wall. Charles did a great job—he was consistent and always there—but for us, attacking was impossible.” – he pointed out.

“It’s difficult to draw conclusions. I had the feeling that some teams played tactically, slowing one car to give a free pit stop to the other. Clearly, two mandatory stops allow for these kinds of tricks, and I understand the drivers’ frustration when they get stuck behind a slower car in the race—it’s not ideal. We need to discuss this internally with the other teams, the FIA, and FOM to see what we can do to improve the situation. Hamilton? The penalty affected his performance.”

Fred Vasseur said Ferrari will not bring updates to Montmeló in order to have a clearer picture of the hierarchy with the new front wings: “From Spain onwards, there will be a new regulation for the front wing and all teams have marked this race on the calendar as a turning point. We don’t yet know exactly how the performance of the other teams will look under these new rules. There could be a reset, but for now, let’s focus on ourselves and try to improve in all types of corners. We’ve made good progress in high-speed corners, while this race went well in the low-speed ones. Let’s try to confirm all of that in Spain. Updates? In Barcelona, all teams will have a new front wing, and I think it makes sense to only bring that, to get a clearer picture.” – the French manager concluded at the end of the Monaco Grand Prix.