By Carlo Platella
Ferrari grabs an unexpected podium at Zandvoort, with Charles Leclerc third followed by Carlos Sainz in fifth position. The SF-24 confirms itself as a racing car rather than a qualifying oneunlike last season, with a difference in competitiveness that according to Frederic Vasseur lies in the details. The Team Principal dwells on this topic at length during the post-race press conference in Holland, then moving on to updates and the next tracks that should meet Ferrari’s needs.
Racing red
“I think that since the beginning of the season In qualifying configuration we are in better shape than in the race”comments Frederic Vasseur with the press present in Zandvoort, included FormulaPassionFerrari’s race pace in Holland is surprising considering the 9 tenths suffered by Leclerc in qualifying and the elimination of Sainz in Q2. “I don’t want to go into too much detail with the engineer, but it’s a question of tyre management, where you put the car and in which window you make the tyres work in these types of situations”
“Last year we were doing better in qualifying and everyone was complaining. Today it’s the opposite. You definitely want to work on your weaknesses. What’s more important for us depends on the track. Sometimes you have to pay more attention to qualifying than the race. But it’s not the same situation as last year, because the difference [dal sabato alla domenica] it was huge. Today we talk in terms of positions and sometimes between fourth and third place it’s less than a tenth. It can depend on the characteristics of the engine or what.”
According to Vasseur, the difficulties of the Prancing Horse on Saturday were also due to the particular circumstances of the Dutch weekend: “The fact that we didn’t do FP1 and that in FP2 we only had one car meant that we were a bit lost. It was probably not good for Leclerc either not to have a reference in FP2. When we got to qualifying there was no magic. If you look at our time in Q3 on used tyres though we had a good pace. Not enough to fight with Lando, that’s for sure, but still better than the final result. I think it’s a question of details”.
Towards Monza
The Team Principal then turns his attention to the next races, commenting on Fernando Alonso’s words according to which Ferrari will be the team to beat in Monza, Singapore and Baku. “I don’t need anyone to tell me if we’re the favorites or not.”, Vasseur’s reply. “Our approach will be the same. I hope that in the next two or three events we will be in better shape. Last year we were much better on these tracks. The fact that we are better on the short corners will help us. However, we were very far away, so I would never go to Monza, Baku or anywhere thinking that it will be a walk in the park.”
In the next appointments, many long-awaited developments will also arrive, which will have the objective of limiting bouncing problems: “If we can make a leap of one or two tenths, everything will change.. However, we also know that everyone is improving and we are aware of Lando’s delay today”. When asked about the chances of taking over McLaren by the end of the year Vasseur replies: “I don’t think like that. We’re just trying to do our best to push development and prepare for Monza, then we’ll see what we can get.”
“Twelve months ago in Zandvoort we were fifth in the race and very far away in qualifying, while the following week we were in pole position. That doesn’t mean we will be next week, but it’s just that it’s been like this since the start of the season.” Vasseur’s optimism is based on the awareness of how much the values on the field have changed in recent months: “After three races everyone they were convinced that Max would be champion halfway through the season. Then we won some races, then Mercedes and now McLaren. I hope that soon it will be Ferrari’s turn again,” concludes the Team Principal.
#Ferrari #eyes #Monza #Vasseur #hope #GPs
