Frédéric Vasseur, team principal of Ferrari, reflects on the first two Grand Prix of the season, which have been eventful for Formula 1, the Scuderia, and Lewis Hamilton.
A tradition seems to be establishing between L’Équipe and the man who has been the head of Ferrari for two years. Last year, upon his return from Shanghai, he visited our offices to share his rich experiences with some of our subscribers.
This year, Frédéric Vasseur (56 years old) gave up his planned lunch with his deputy Jérôme d’Ambrosio on Wednesday to deliver, via video from his office in Maranello, his analysis of a strange start to the season, whether for F1, the Scuderia, or his new driver Lewis Hamilton. A discussion of more than half an hour during which the former engineer, as often, demonstrated didacticism and pedagogy in an attempt to make understandable what many, even within the paddock, fail to grasp.
China GP: Ferrari in the Red
“When the head of Ferrari returns from China after such a weekend, what are his feelings? Does he return satisfied with Lewis Hamilton’s victory in the sprint race or annoyed by the double disqualification at the end of the Grand Prix?” My job is to be able to analyze the positives and negatives of all situations to progress. Every weekend has its ups and downs and this one had both extremes. Unfortunately, what we often remember is the last race or the last event.
So we returned with a bit of frustration, because we felt we had made a step forward compared to Australia (Charles Leclerc 8th, Hamilton 10th). It did not materialize in points due to the disqualifications, but I think we were on the right track with plenty of positives: Lewis’s pole and sprint victory and Charles’s race on Sunday. But even the good, we need to analyze, understand it to progress.
Was this sprint success important to validate the Hamilton project? We don’t need that to validate the project as you say. Or rather, the project is much broader than the sprint in China. However, we have fulfilled part of the contract. We will no longer have to answer this question of the first pole or the first victory. Of the three races we have done, it was one of the biggest dominations we have had. Finishing with seven seconds on the second after a race that is a third of a GP, it answers some questions and doubts.
“When you are at Ferrari, you are never in the norm and the daily routine. There is always this passion.”
How does Ferrari handle Hamilton’s arrival on a daily basis?
After the enormous excitement of the first three days when he arrived in Maranello in mid-January, is there still the same passion, the same pressure, or has everything returned to normal? At Ferrari, we are never in the realm of the ordinary and everyday. There is always this passion. Certainly even more so with Lewis. We saw it in China this weekend, we saw it in Australia. Now, we try to stay away from that. There were people who told us: “Ah, you made a lot of noise with Lewis this winter.” No. It was the press that made a lot of noise. We didn’t ask for anything.
We took a photo. We didn’t do a single interview. We didn’t even do a launch in Maranello. So this excitement exists, it is inherent to the team, to the drivers, but it’s not something we seek. We have to live with it, that’s all. I take it as a positive because it’s good to have fans waiting outside and who are enthusiastic. I like that energy.
Isn’t the media frenzy sometimes too overwhelming?
When you are in such an exposed sport, you know you will face it. We received quite a few criticisms after the weekend in China, it’s part of the game. Formula 1 is a highly publicized sport. You have to accept being applauded, it’s pleasant; but also being criticized, it’s the law. My only concern is that this enthusiasm does not harm our work or our performances.
“Lewis can extract the maximum from all the people around him because he is demanding with himself and it goes very well when he is demanding with others”
Twenty years after working together in GP2, in 2006, has Lewis Hamilton changed?
We all change in twenty years but the common characteristic between today’s Lewis and the Lewis of 20 years ago is that he is extremely demanding. The first to go running in the morning, the first to do sports. This is his trademark and he has kept it. And by being demanding with himself, he is also extremely demanding with everyone. He has this ability to push everyone a bit. When we talk about driver performance, it’s not just about braking late at turn eight.
Lewis can extract the maximum from all the people around him because he is demanding with himself and it goes very well when he is demanding with others. This also allows us to change our vision. We don’t do things like Mercedes, like Red Bull, like McLaren; we all do things differently, but despite everything we all end up in the same tenth. Lewis, because of his past, has other demands, he thinks about things differently. And I’m not saying it’s better or worse. But it helps us.
Since his arrival in Maranello, Hamilton seems transformed, more human or expressing his feelings like when on Saturday, he admits to having been affected by some criticisms he received…
(He interrupts) I don’t know. But admit that some criticisms were… (he hesitates) very harsh. To think that Hamilton is worn out, outdated, is harsh. And besides, it’s false. Look at his last race of last year, he starts sixteenth and finishes fourth by overtaking his teammate.
On Leclerc’s Current Situation
Indeed, Charles Leclerc is less in the spotlight, but this gives him more time for himself, to do other things, to be with his engineers. There’s a silver lining in this. There might be some frustration, some jealousy, but I believe Charles is smart, he understands the situation better and he primarily sees the positive side of it all. He can focus 100% on his sporting objective.
On the FOM’s Broadcasting Oversight
I didn’t have to explain myself. I expressed my thoughts to the press and that was it. I’m not saying that the FOM (Formula One Group, responsible for the promotion, broadcasting, and management of F1 races since 1987) did it on purpose. I don’t know, I wasn’t there.
Forgetting that it was Lewis Hamilton who suggested letting Charles pass is probably better for the show and it was a bit less glamorous, a bit less tabloid to discover that the champion decides to let his teammate pass. However, it was incredibly classy and sportsmanlike of Lewis. A true testament to his professionalism and respect for the team. And it’s not often that a seven-time world champion says: “I’m going to let my teammate pass because he’s faster than me.”
On Leclerc’s Downgrade
Leclerc’s downgrade on Sunday is reminiscent of what happened to Russell last year in Belgium (the Mercedes driver was disqualified for the same reason). Is there a way to try, when on a single tire change, not to fall below the weight limit due to overly worn tires? (He interrupts) It’s not just that. Tires are only part of the explanation… We also lost a liter of water with Charles’ drink reserve leaking. The downgrade for weight is always a sum of many small factors.
On Hamilton’s Downgrade
Correct. We must have been too aggressive. That’s how it is. This setback shows that we are in pursuit of perfection and that sometimes, we look too far.
“The goal in F1 is to push the limits of all parameters, everywhere. To reach the last gram of weight, to reach the last tenth of a millimeter of the skid block, to reach the last millimeter of wing deformation.”
On Future Disqualifications
Yes, there will certainly be many more disqualifications. It’s important to distinguish between disqualification because we take risks and disqualification because someone cheats. The goal in F1 is to push the limits of all parameters, everywhere. To reach the last gram of weight, to reach the last tenth of a millimeter of the skid block, to reach the last millimeter of wing deformation. So it’s certain that the more pressure we’re under, the more intense the fight, the more we need to approach these limits and the more risks we take.
Understanding the Complexity of Formula 1
On Sunday, at the end of the race, you expressed confusion about all these results, saying you had difficulty analyzing them. Other team bosses are saying the same thing. How do you explain that in a sport that is so technical, so precise, you all face a kind of incomprehension?
Formula 1 is not that simple. When you build a car, you get a single-seater capable of a certain potential. Let’s say your potential is 1’28” per lap, in the best of situations. If your team or your driver doesn’t get everything in order, if a mistake is made somewhere, your time will go to 1’28”4.
In the past, there was a half-second gap between each team so when Max Verstappen made the biggest mistakes, which rarely happens, even losing four-tenths, he stayed ahead of us. By a tenth only, but ahead of us. Today, some imagine that McLaren dominates everything, but we are very close in terms of lap time. We have four teams within a tenth.
Last year, in the last four races and while no one was bringing any evolution, there were four different winners. And each time, the winner put half a lap on the others. This means that depending on the track conditions, the tarmac, and the weather, the entire hierarchy can be redefined. We’re not talking about the potential of the car, nor the potential of the driver – even though they count enormously – but about the extraction of the potential we make on a weekend depending on the characteristics.
Comfort in Pole Position and Sprint Victory
Does the pole and sprint victory comfort you after Sunday’s demotion?
I don’t need to be comforted. I can see that the car is not bad; we have the numbers to prove it. To win, we will need to approach its full potential, this base of 1’28”00 I was talking about, but that exposes you to mistakes. That’s the rule. Verstappen, a year and a half ago, his car was worth 1’28”0 but the second was worth 1’28”7. He didn’t have to push himself to the limit, to the last millimeter of ride height, nor to scrape the last hundred grams of weight or to push harder on the brakes than the limit. He did 1’28”1 and he had the pole with a half-second lead. Today, it’s not the same life. So he also makes mistakes, he makes setup errors like the others because we are all now in this dynamic of searching for the limit.
Managing Drivers for Thirty Years
Having managed drivers for thirty years, would you change one of yours after two starts like Red Bull seems about to do?
That’s Red Bull’s business. You don’t know how hard it is to judge what’s going on in a team. We don’t know what’s happening there, what leads them to this decision. There are a billion reasons behind it, known only to the team and the driver. And sometimes, the driver doesn’t know them. So I prefer not to comment. It may seem brutal because it’s only been two races, but we don’t have 10% of the elements to judge. I hate being judged for what we do, so I won’t do it for others.
Repeating Last Year’s Success
Last year, you had your first success at the third Grand Prix, in Australia. Will Ferrari be able to repeat that next week, at Suzuka, for the third meeting of the season?
We already won at the second race! (He bursts out laughing).
