«Ferrari paid for last year’s choices. Leclerc? Sometimes he risks too much and makes mistakes»- Corriere.it

The final pieces of the single-seaters for Austria are bolted together in the Gestione Sportiva assembly room. On the Fiorano track, Leclerc and Sainz take advantage of the 100 km filming day to test the new features to use this weekend: front wing and bottom. Truth race at the Red Bull Ring, the first of four by the end of July. Fred Vasseur takes a lunch break at the legendary Montana. «I improve with Italian, I know the whole menu». He laughs, shows optimism: «We are going in the right direction».

Yet from the rankings it would not be clear, why is he confident?

«In Canada we made progress, we had clear from day one what was wrong with this car, fast in qualifying, over a single lap, but difficult to drive in the race».

If you understood it from day one why is progress only seen now?

«We had to “turn the ship”, change the direction of developments. It takes months, the process began in March in the wind tunnel after discovering the problems».

So the real Ferrari World Championship starts now, is this his car?

«It’s not my way of thinking or of managing a team. Never thought for one second of giving up. It wasn’t a problem of potential, but of how to exploit it. In Montreal we were shooting to the rhythms of Verstappen. It is clear that this is not enough, the next circuits will tell us a lot».

Let’s start with Austria.

“It is the opposite of Canada, if we do well there too, we will have the confirmation that we have taken the right path”.

Step back. Upon his arrival at Ferrari there was talk of the World Championship. Who told you that this car would be top notch and on what basis?

“I don’t feel like blaming anyone. But last year certain choices were made. From the first kilometers at Fiorano, and then in the tests in Bahrain, we understood that they weren’t working. The simulations had underestimated some negative effects on the behavior of the car. So we were forced to look for a compromise between performance and driveability».

From the way he talks it seems that the plan to bring Ferrari back to winning ways will take months, maybe years. Are you the patient type?

“No. And it’s not a matter of patience. Of weeks, months or years. But of sensations. They’re good now because I’m starting to see progress. Winning must always be the goal.”

Have you spoken to Mattia Binotto in recent months?

“No, I only met him before being named. And now I don’t feel like dedicating energy to thinking about the past. The past is the past, I don’t know what the dynamics were within the team at the time».

And the future? It’s true that he hired a top-level engineer, who is he?

“No names, it’s part of a larger reinforcement plan. That’s how things are in F1. Do you want a junior engineer? Arrives in 6 months. Do you want a senior one? At least 18 are needed. This one, whom I consider a “top guy”, will work on the 2025 machine».

Who directs the project for next year’s single-seater? Still the technical director Enrico Cardile, do you trust him?

“Yes him. But let’s remember that reinforcements must arrive in every department, in some we are undersized compared to Red Bull, Mercedes or Aston Martin. I’m also pushing to bring in people from outside the Ferrari world, who bring knowledge from outside».

Drivers chapter. Sainz says he wants to stay after 2024. But the renewal negotiations don’t start, why?

“There’s 18 months left until the deadline, so is Charles. At this moment, introducing the renewal topic would be a distraction, I told their managers a couple of weeks ago. The priority is for the drivers to work together to develop the car. Then during the summer, or after, we’ll start talking about it.”

So you don’t run the risk of losing them?

“That risk is always there. They are both attracted by the project, they want to stay and win. But we have to think as a team and mature in every area. Talking only about riders today would be wrong for the steps forward we have to make as a team».

Sainz is said to have been Binotto’s choice, not Vasseur’s. What does he answer?

“If that’s why I didn’t choose Charles either, I found him. So? I am satisfied with Carlos, he is regular and gives important technical indications. With Charles he forms a winning couple. I think he’s very underrated.”

How will he convince Leclerc to stay?

«The best way is to give him a competitive car. He knows that every season is crucial to his career. He has one goal: to become world champion. And winning the title is also our goal. We need to make both him and Carlos feel at the center of the project».

And the two of them in what they have to grow?

«Carlos is fast and balanced, but like everyone else, he has room for growth. Charles, on the other hand, is capable of doing magic in qualifying, of going further. But he sometimes goes beyond the limit always seeking the maximum even when the car cannot give it. He always wants to win, so he can make mistakes like him at the beginning of the season. We talked about it together.”

Does Verstappen dominate because he’s the best or because he has the best car?

«Since he’s been world champion, he’s almost never made a mistake. The titles have given him a new level of security, for him there is a before and an after…”.

What was the hardest decision you’ve made since you’ve been in Maranello?

«Moving personnel from one job to another, reorganizing the structure».

What must Ferrari do to return to the top of F1?

«Grow faster than others. It’s time to accelerate, which is why we hire and invest in the future.”

Who was your idol as a child?

«First Jacques Laffite. Then Prost, as a Frenchman I was rooting for him in the matches against Senna. It was strange to find ourselves together with Renault a few years ago».

Will Ferrari be able to win a race this year?

“If we had started up front in Montreal, it would have been possible. Now let’s see if we’ll be able to do it in Austria.”