Frederic Vasseur remains optimistic: “Maximizing points is crucial. We hope to make a significant step forward very soon”
Qualifying results were in line with what Ferrari expected for Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz, with few surprises and a sense of anticipation as they look ahead to the Italian Grand Prix at Monza. Expectations are high, especially given the update package that Vasseur confirmed just a few minutes ago.
Speaking to Sky Sport, Frederic Vasseur said: “Was this the best result we could have achieved today? I’m not sure. For Charles, we might have been able to challenge Sergio Perez and gain another position, but not more than that. We knew before this weekend that, due to the track configuration and without updates, our expectations were low, especially since last year this was our worst race of 2023. It’s not an easy track, and it’s important to maximize points at every race on the calendar.”
“As for Carlos, it will be more difficult: he didn’t get a single lap on the softs before qualifying, and combined with the issue he had, it’s almost impossible to qualify for Q3 when everyone is so close.”
Vasseur’s announcement: “Bouncing? We’ve made progress, but a big step forward is coming soon…”
“Bouncing? I don’t want to get too technical, but this track has very fast corners like 7-8. But there are also long corners, where we’ve struggled from the start, and it’s a tough challenge. It’s not directly related to bouncing because we’ve made some progress, and I hope we’ll make a much bigger step forward soon. We simply have to deal with the car’s limitations. But again, I hope we’ll take a big step forward soon, and for tomorrow, the most important thing is to score as many points as possible.”
“Motivating Sainz? I think he will regain his pace fairly quickly. In qualifying, it’s always about tenths of a second, but in the race, there’s more to manage. Maybe we can do something with the strategy; we’ll look into it tonight, but often there’s already an optimal idea, and being aggressive always has its downsides.”
“Yesterday, we gathered less data on race pace because we only ran one car. I think Norris is ahead, and then everyone is closer together: tomorrow, there will be less wind and cooler temperatures, so only the details can make the difference in situations like this, where it comes down to tenths of a second. When you’re struggling, you always hope for consistent weather, but instead, there have been ups and downs for everyone”, ended Vasseur.
Photo: Scuderia Ferrari HP
