“The Ferrari team does not communicate properly with its drivers”: this is the criticism voiced by Jacques Villeneuve following recent races. The Austrian Grand Prix marked Ferrari’s best result of the season so far, with Charles Leclerc finishing in third place and Lewis Hamilton securing fourth. However, despite this podium finish, there is little reason for celebration. The race unfolded in a kind of midfield limbo, with Ferrari’s car performance falling between two extremes—it was too slow to challenge the McLaren ahead, but still too fast to be caught by the Mercedes behind. The team focused on maintaining control throughout the race, opting for conservative strategies. The engineers likely understood that extracting more than this result from the Ferrari SF-25 was unrealistic and chose to avoid unnecessary risks.
In contrast, Lewis Hamilton wanted to play a bold card to make his race more exciting. During the second pit stop window, the British driver requested to stay out longer on the track, hoping to have fresher tires toward the end to mount an attack on Charles Leclerc and secure his first podium of the year. Unfortunately, the pit wall instructed him to come in, forcing him to comply and lose the potential advantage.
Speaking on his Instagram channel, 1997 Formula 1 World Champion Jacques Villeneuve highlighted that this is the second time Ferrari has ignored its drivers’ input during a race weekend. He stated, “The communication between the drivers and the engineers is not aligned. Charles Leclerc was not listened to in Montreal, and Lewis Hamilton in Spielberg. It’s a bit strange.” Indeed, at the previous race in Montreal, the Monegasque driver Charles Leclerc had attempted to shake things up to maximize his chances, but the team strategists again favored a more cautious approach. In truth, neither side is entirely right or wrong; they are simply doing the best they can with the limitations of the current Ferrari SF-25.
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