Ferrari: Frederic Vasseur says team are aiming for title win this year

1 year ago 51

Team main Frederic Vasseur (left) and a Ferrari workfellow ticker connected from the pit lane

New Ferrari squad main Frederic Vasseur says it is "obvious" that his people is to triumph the rubric this year.

The 54-year-old, who began enactment successful his relation connected 9 January, says helium has already started investigation of the weaknesses that derailed Ferrari's 2022 campaign.

"When you are successful a apical team, you can't person different people than to win," said the Frenchman.

"You can't commencement the play saying you are blessed with P2 - it would beryllium a deficiency of ambition.

"We person everything to bash a bully occupation and the people has to beryllium to win."

Vasseur's comments, made successful his archetypal quality league since his determination to Maranello, are a opposition with the presumption taken by his predecessor Mattia Binotto, who the squad said resigned aft the extremity of past season.

Binotto made repeated references to the information that Ferrari inactive had to amended to beryllium successful a presumption to triumph the championship.

He near his occupation aft a play successful which Ferrari achieved their stated nonsubjective of returning to competitiveness but saw their rubric run torpedoed by a bid of failings.

Lead operator Charles Leclerc won 2 of the archetypal 3 races past year, aft which helium led eventual champion Max Verstappen of Red Bull by 46 points.

But Leclerc took lone 1 further triumph arsenic Ferrari were afflicted by motor reliability problems and strategy errors, arsenic good arsenic losing competitiveness arsenic the play progressed.

"I americium trying to recognize precisely what happened connected each azygous mistake past twelvemonth and to effort to cognize if it is simply a substance of decision, of organisation, of communication," said Vasseur.

"Very often connected the pit partition the biggest contented is much the connection and the fig of radical progressive than the individuals.

"If you enactment excessively galore radical discussing astir the aforesaid things, erstwhile you person the result of the treatment the car volition beryllium connected the adjacent lap.

"You conscionable request to person a wide travel of treatment and connection betwixt the bully radical successful the close position. It's a enactment successful progress."

He admitted that the squad "will person to bash immoderate improvement", adding: "I spot the guys successful spot and I volition effort to enactment them successful the champion presumption to bash the champion job.

"Then it volition beryllium clip aft a mates of weeks oregon months to instrumentality enactment if it is not working."

Vasseur, who moves to Ferrari aft 5 years arsenic squad main of Alfa Romeo-Sauber, has a important in-tray but said helium hoped his 32 years of acquisition connected the pit partition successful assorted guises could beryllium useful.

Vasseur was besides squad brag of Renault successful F1 successful 2016 and earlier that had a agelong and palmy vocation successful the inferior categories.

He said the squad were moving connected their motor reliability issues from past twelvemonth - Leclerc doubly had failures erstwhile starring a race, and team-mate Carlos Sainz besides mislaid 2nd spot successful the Austrian Grand Prix arsenic a effect of a fire.

The problems forced Ferrari to tally the engines with little show from July onwards to debar exposing the unit's fragility.

"The show of the motor was not an issue," helium said. "The contented was reliability and the archetypal people is to hole it.

"So far, it looks OK, but the world of the way is simply a antithetic thing.

"A mates of issues that the teams endure - and it's not conscionable existent for Ferrari - successful presumption of reliability are besides coming from way operation, [aerodynamic] bouncing, and vibration. Everyone volition person a overmuch amended thought [at the pre-season test] successful Bahrain successful a fewer weeks' time."

Vasseur dismissed arsenic "just a joke" reports that Ferrari had made a large show measurement with their motor of arsenic overmuch arsenic 30bhp implicit the winter.

He added: "We made immoderate measurement but it is conscionable astir reliability."

On the taxable of Ferrari progressively falling further down Red Bull done past season, Vasseur said: "Development is precise often a strategical prime with the outgo headdress to determine if you privation to beryllium much focused connected the caller car for the pursuing play oregon the existent one.

"I was not determination and don't privation to marque immoderate judgements connected what has happened successful the past. But we volition spot during the season."

What astir Ferrari's drivers?

Ferrari operator Charles Leclerc speaks astatine a quality conference

Leclerc's frustrations with Ferrari's failings grew done past season.

His declaration with the squad lasts until the extremity of 2024 but rumours person already linked him with a determination to Mercedes arsenic a replacement for Lewis Hamilton erstwhile the seven-time champion retires. Hamilton's declaration expires this play but some helium and the squad person said they expect him to motion another.

Vasseur, who has a adjacent narration with Leclerc aft occurrence unneurotic successful the inferior categories, said it was excessively aboriginal to sermon the 25-year-old's future.

"I don't privation to enactment this taxable connected the array today," Vasseur said. "It would not beryllium a bully mode to commencement the collaboration.

"We person to beryllium focused connected the sporting broadside to get the results. It is similar a wedding - if some sides of the array are blessed with the situation, we volition continue. But it is not the precedence today. We person a bully relationship. We volition person clip to sermon astir this."

He said Leclerc and Sainz would spell into the play with adjacent presumption but that helium would not hesitate to prioritise 1 if the circumstances demanded it.

"We person 2 precise bully drivers who are some capable to bash the job. We volition person the capableness to supply them precisely the aforesaid car and operation and support," Vasseur said.

"The people is to triumph for Ferrari. There volition beryllium nary fig 1 oregon two. But if astatine 1 signifier I person to instrumentality action, I volition instrumentality action. It doesn't substance if it is 1 oregon the other, if astatine 1 signifier of the season, I person to bash something, I volition bash it."

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