Fred Vasseur under growing pressure as Ferrari risks repeating Mattia Binotto-era mistakes, warns F1 expert
Ferrari team boss Frederic Vasseur is experiencing his most turbulent period since taking the reins at Maranello in early 2023. What began as a promising tenure is now under intense scrutiny as the team’s 2025 campaign continues to falter on multiple fronts.
In 2024, the Italian side showed genuine promise, coming within just 14 points of clinching their first constructors’ championship since 2008. Barring a misjudged upgrade package introduced during the Spanish Grand Prix, the team operated with impressive efficiency both on and off the track. Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz consistently delivered strong performances, even with Carlos Sainz fully aware that his time with the team was coming to an end following the announcement of Lewis Hamilton’s impending arrival.
Fast forward to the 2025 season, and Ferrari’s prospects have taken a dramatic downturn. Just ten races in, it already appears unlikely that the Scuderia will contend for either championship title, with performance concerns becoming increasingly evident.
Lewis Hamilton reportedly entered the team with high expectations, convinced they had a package capable of fighting for the championship following his early visits to the Maranello factory. However, the technical direction Ferrari pursued during the winter break — overseen by Fred Vasseur — has ultimately led the team away from competitiveness.
Former F1 technical director and respected analyst Gary Anderson, known for his engineering roles with Jordan, Stewart, and Jaguar, has weighed in on the situation. Writing for The Race, Anderson expressed concern that Ferrari may be repeating a damaging structural decision made under former team boss Mattia Binotto.
Gary Anderson reflected on Ferrari’s internal leadership dynamic, noting that the French manager appeared to seek full control over staffing and structural operations from the outset. This echoed the era when Mattia Binotto held both the team principal and technical director roles, something Anderson previously warned against. He suggested that attempting to combine those two leadership positions is a fundamental mistake — one that Ferrari should have learned from by now.
According to Gary Anderson, no single individual should bear the weight of both team management and technical development. If Ferrari is allowing history to repeat itself by concentrating too much power in one person’s hands, the team should be prepared for continued underperformance.
The situation worsened in July 2024 when Enrico Cardile departed the team, prompting Fred Vasseur to temporarily assume the role of chassis technical director. Though Lewis Hamilton and Enrico Cardile never officially worked together, there is speculation that decisions made during Enrico Cardile’s tenure — and continued under Fred Vasseur — may have negatively affected the car’s direction, limiting its development potential compared to rivals like McLaren and Mercedes.
As Ferrari struggles to keep up, chairman John Elkann faces a pivotal decision regarding Fred Vasseur’s future. With the Frenchman’s contract set to expire at the end of the 2025 season, the pressure to deliver meaningful results has never been greater. However, there are reports that the decision about whether Fred Vasseur stays or goes could be made well before the season’s conclusion.
The recent Canadian Grand Prix highlighted the fragility of Ferrari’s situation. Charles Leclerc’s crash during practice severely compromised his race weekend — a scenario clearly beyond Fred Vasseur’s control. Yet, the timing of reports in the Italian media, suggesting that the Frenchman’s position was under review, has raised eyebrows across the paddock.
Rather than publicly quashing those rumours, John Elkann remained silent, allowing speculation to flourish. The lack of a firm statement of support has only intensified the scrutiny on Fred Vasseur’s leadership heading into the upcoming Austrian GP — a race that could have significant implications for both his short- and long-term future with the Scuderia.
