Ferrari chairman John Elkann is expected to have the decisive say over Fred Vasseur’s long-term future as team principal, with pressure around the Frenchman increasing after another difficult Formula 1 weekend at Monza. Lewis Hamilton’s call for clearer rules between himself and Charles Leclerc has added another layer to a wider debate over leadership, driver management and how much authority Vasseur has inside the organisation.
There is currently little expectation that Ferrari will remove Vasseur before his contract expires at the end of 2027. The more significant question is what happens beyond that point. Any decision over a renewal is ultimately expected to rest with Elkann, whose own relationship with Formula 1 has now come under scrutiny as Ferrari’s championship challenge begins to unravel.
Lewis Hamilton increases pressure on Fred Vasseur after Monza
The latest tension emerged from the opening lap of the Italian Grand Prix. Lewis Hamilton complained over team radio that Charles Leclerc had pushed him off the circuit and maintained after the race that he had been ahead at the Turn 1 apex.
The incident followed growing debate over how Ferrari manages its two drivers. Only 24 hours earlier, Hamilton had indicated that his stronger points position should be taken into consideration, before subsequently calling for Vasseur to establish clearer rules of engagement between the two cars.
That request places renewed attention on the team principal’s handling of a situation already examined through the wider debate over Ferrari’s approach to team orders between Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc. With both drivers competing for positions and championship points, the absence of an obvious hierarchy has become increasingly significant.
Hamilton believes the team’s decisions have already cost him valuable ground in the Drivers’ Championship. He pointed to the Dutch Grand Prix as an example, arguing that Ferrari’s refusal to use team orders after he caught Leclerc on fresher tyres prevented him from securing third place.
Ferrari’s championship challenge begins to unravel
The timing makes the internal debate particularly uncomfortable. Ferrari has now completed three consecutive Grands Prix without a podium, while hopes of challenging for both Formula 1 championships are fading.
Hamilton believes he has surrendered important points in his pursuit of championship leader Kimi Antonelli because Ferrari has not always given him the full strategic backing he wanted. That frustration has contributed to the sense of a developing power struggle involving Hamilton and Vasseur, with difficult decisions over driver priority becoming increasingly hard to postpone.
Monza was especially painful for the hierarchy because Ferrari’s struggles unfolded at home. The team’s performance was understood not to have gone down well with senior management, particularly as Kimi Antonelli later celebrated his success in front of the Tifosi.
Luca di Montezemolo questions support for Ferrari team principal
Before the Italian Grand Prix, former Ferrari chairman Luca di Montezemolo raised another important issue: whether Fred Vasseur genuinely has the support of the company’s most senior figures.
Montezemolo questioned whether anyone within Ferrari’s hierarchy was visibly backing the team principal. Without strong public support from above, Vasseur could naturally find it more difficult to take major decisions, particularly something as politically sensitive as choosing one driver to receive priority over the other.
Those concerns fit into a wider discussion about whether Ferrari’s current problems extend beyond Fred Vasseur himself. The question is no longer simply whether the Frenchman is making the right calls, but whether the organisational structure around him gives the team principal enough backing to make them confidently.
Ralf Bach raises questions over John Elkann’s Formula 1 passion
When Luca di Montezemolo’s comments were put to F1 Insider journalist Ralf Bach, the discussion shifted towards John Elkann.
Bach characterised the outside perception of the Ferrari chairman as significantly softer than Montezemolo had been during his time in charge. He suggested that Elkann was not viewed as someone inclined to use his authority as forcefully as his predecessor once did.
The journalist also relayed claims he had heard from within Italy that Elkann was not personally a Formula 1 enthusiast and remained involved partly because racing was inseparable from Ferrari tradition. In Bach’s assessment, the chairman did not appear to possess the same deeply rooted Formula 1 passion associated with Montezemolo or the Ferrari heritage itself.
The contrast between the two chairmen is considerable. Luca di Montezemolo worked as Enzo Ferrari’s assistant roughly two decades before eventually becoming Ferrari president, giving him a direct grounding in the company’s racing culture long before taking its highest leadership role.
John Elkann came from a very different background. He did not build his career within motor racing and reached the Ferrari chairmanship through his position at the head of the Agnelli family’s investment interests. His broader business responsibilities extend well beyond the Scuderia, encompassing major interests connected with Stellantis and Italian football club Juventus.
John Elkann faces the eventual Fred Vasseur decision
None of this means a change of Ferrari team principal is considered imminent. Vasseur remains unlikely to be dismissed before the end of his existing deal in 2027, but the question of whether Ferrari will offer another contract is increasingly relevant.
Elkann is expected to make that final decision. By then, the judgement will inevitably involve more than race results alone. The management of Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc, Vasseur’s ability to impose clear sporting rules and the level of backing he receives from Ferrari’s senior leadership are all becoming part of the same discussion.
For Hamilton, greater clarity between the two sides of the garage could already have championship consequences. The seven-time world champion has made his position increasingly clear as his first Ferrari title challenge develops, while the broader Lewis Hamilton story at Ferrari continues to become intertwined with questions over how the team is managed.
The immediate expectation is therefore continuity rather than dismissal. The more consequential decision lies further ahead: whether Vasseur remains the person Ferrari trusts to lead the team beyond 2027. And when that moment arrives, John Elkann is expected to be the executive who makes the final call.
Leave a Reply