Scuderia Ferrari secures the third victory of the Fred Vasseur era, again on a street circuit. The hero of the day is Charles Leclerc, who clinched a win on his home streets that, according to the Team Principal, will greatly benefit his self-esteem in the future. The Maranello team’s confidence is also strengthened, preparing for a three-way battle with Red Bull and McLaren that is set to continue for a long time.
The race
The head of the Prancing Horse reconstructs Sunday in the Principality, celebrating the work done by the drivers: “Today we know it wasn’t the most entertaining race of the year, but with 77 laps to do on the same tires, we asked Charles to manage the pace and run 3 seconds slower, and he handled everything well. For Carlos, it was even more difficult. He had to stay close to Piastri to cover a potential Safety Car, but also not give Norris too much of an advantage over Russell. It was frustrating for them because they repeatedly asked via radio if they could push, but it wasn’t in our interest.”
In the final stages, the attention was all on the possible stop of Lando Norris, but the Team Principal’s concern was another: “I was more afraid of a possible late Safety Car and that they could put on the soft tires. However, Carlos pushed for one lap and did a 1’15”700”, while he was previously running at 1’17”100”, which means he had a huge pace reserve, never having pushed on the tires.”
Carlos Sainz climbed to the bottom step of the podium after a puncture at the start had sent him to the back of the group. “On the pit wall, we hadn’t seen the incident behind us,” Vasseur recounts. “We were busy talking to Carlos to see if he could restart the car. Then we saw the red flag and realized there was another incident. Certainly, when they told us that not all cars had crossed the first sector line and the order had to be reconstructed at the Safety Car line, it was good news.” – the French manager pointed out.
The red flag effectively nullified any strategic variables for the race, as all drivers changed their tires during the neutralization, but Frederic Vasseur disagrees with those proposing to abolish this rule: “Imagine if we were halfway through the race, the situation would have been different. Some would have already stopped, and others not, so some would have been disadvantaged if they had to stop again; it would have been unfair. There is no perfect rule suited for every situation.” – the Ferrari boss explained.
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Finally Charles Leclerc
The protagonist of the day is Charles Leclerc, who appeared in sparkling form throughout the weekend, even from a psychological perspective: “Last year he was a bit nervous from the beginning of the weekend, while this year he was more relaxed. From the first lap of the first practice, he had a fantastic weekend, he was flying. Even when in Q1 he picked up a plastic bag with the front wing and lost 2-3 laps, he remained calm.” – Fred Vasseur continued.
“I think this victory will help him a lot in terms of self-confidence,” reflects the Team Principal, convinced that the home win will greatly aid Leclerc in his growth journey. “It’s an important victory. In recent years he felt the weight of winning in Monaco on his shoulders. Sometimes he made mistakes, like in Formula 2, while other times he was unlucky, like the brake failure in Formula 1 with Alfa Romeo. Besides this race, now surely his approach and confidence will also improve for the upcoming events.”
Continuous progress.
The Monaco win represents Ferrari’s second victory of the season, confirming improvements in the project compared to last season: “We have made progress in tire management, even if today it wasn’t a key issue. Last year we had a clear picture of the situation: we were better in qualifying and struggled on longer stints, we suffered in some corners and less in others. We worked on our weaknesses and made a leap forward. This has slightly damaged our qualifying performance, but benefited the race. In the end, this year we are scoring many more points than last year. It means we are heading in the right direction.”
Fred Vasseur, however, emphasizes that the recent results are not just due to the car: “It’s partly the car and partly the setup. We have improved in some areas, but we have also changed our focus. We convinced everyone that points are awarded on Sunday. This means that in weekend preparation and setup choices, you need to focus more on the race, and it’s paying off. Certainly in Monaco, the focus is on qualifying, but in Canada, the story will be different. This year in preparation, we focus much more on Sunday.”
The challenge heats up
In Monte Carlo, Ferrari gains 32 points on Red Bull in the constructors’ standings, reopening the title fight. The head of Maranello, however, clarifies: “I never said the championship was closed. There are still 16 races and about 500 points to be collected. At the same time, I think Red Bull and Verstappen never thought they were already champions.”
“The motivation has always been there, but the victory is a confidence boost for the team and drivers. As soon as you find yourself in a position to win, you pay more attention to details. It’s a chain effect and part of the growth over the last few months. The worst thing, however, would be to think that everything is already done because there will be tracks with different designs and characteristics that will be more favorable to McLaren and Red Bull. There will be ups and downs until the end of the year.”
May strengthens the conviction of a general picture of great balance: “If you look at the recent races like this one, Miami, Imola, but also Melbourne, we were within a tenth, even on longer stints. In Miami, we did 40 seconds to finish 2 seconds behind Max, while in Imola after 67 laps we were 6 seconds behind. Now there are three teams fighting for pole position and victory. Depending on the tracks, there will be an advantage for Red Bull, Ferrari, and McLaren. We need to be opportunistic because last year we lost a lot of points, but this year we have improved in this.” – he continued.
The importance of pressure
In closing, the Team Principal reiterates the importance of putting pressure on the world champions. Max Verstappen’s error in qualifying, in fact, follows closely on the heels of mistakes made in the previous week’s test: “Max made more mistakes in Imola than in the last three seasons. It happens when you have to push more. If you are in your comfort zone, you don’t make mistakes, and I think they were in that situation. We shouldn’t draw conclusions; they will come back stronger.”
“Last year we had a significant advantage,” Fred Vasseur continues. “Sometimes we managed to worry them in qualifying, but in the race, they had a 4-5 tenth advantage, and when that’s the case, you’re never really at risk. In Jeddah, Max started ninth and after a few laps was in front, or in Austria he came back to set the fastest lap at the last moment. They had a pit stop advantage in strategy, and in these conditions, a mistake cost little. This year, however, it’s no longer like that.” – the Ferrari team principal concluded at the end of the Moanco Grand Prix.
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