Vasseur doubles down over Ferrari’s present automotive idea

Ferrari boss Frederic Vasseur says altering their 2023 Formulation 1 automotive idea mid-season “just isn’t the most effective answer” to get them again combating for Grand Prix wins.

Hopes had been excessive in Maranello that the SF-23 machine can be an evolution from the 2022 automotive, with the staff hitting all of their targets for the brand new challenger.

Nevertheless, after six races, Ferrari have only one podium – a 3rd place in Azerbaijan – to their title, though Charles Leclerc did take the one non-Pink Bull pole of the yr to this point in that Baku race.

However the automotive is now fourth-best after Aston Martin’s big leap ahead and Mercedes’ re-engineered their W14 to suit extra typical sidepods, with all three nonetheless a hefty chunk away from Pink Bull and the RB19.

And Vasseur feels a change in SF-23 idea wouldn’t assist the staff win in 2023 owing to how late such upgrades would arrive.

Vasseur on Ferrari idea

“There are numerous questions, the primary one is concerning the package deal,” Vasseur instructed media, together with RacingNews365.com, when requested if he’d be pressured to selected between the automotive or the engineers if an improve didn’t work as meant within the Spanish Grand Prix.

“It isn’t simply concerning the potential and package deal and upgrades, we additionally must improve the automotive into a greater window.

“The primary goal for us is to not simply put downforce on the automotive, it’s to be extra constant and on prime of the automotive.

“We have now large room for enchancment with the present automotive by way of efficiency, and the second [question] is do we have now to restart from scratch on the group or on the automotive.

“I’d say that so long as I’m satisfied we are able to enhance the present automotive, it will be a mistake, through the season, to vary fully the goal, first for timeframe.

“Ought to the staff determine right this moment to, through the 2023 season, carry a totally totally different automotive, I believe it’s going to carry us to October and I’m not certain it is the most effective answer to enhance within the mid-term view.

“We have already got subsequent yr’s automotive within the wind tunnel and we’re engaged on it, however to attempt to introduce a totally totally different automotive within the season, it’s fairly important at this stage of the season.”

Missing in consistency

Whereas the SF-23 stays a potent weapon in slow-speed corners, it isn’t as constant because the 2022 automotive in different areas – one thing highlighted by Vasseur, who additionally defined a few of the driver feedback concerning the automotive being tough to drive.

“You all the time have to remain calm, if the automotive was so troublesome to drive, I am unable to think about we might be one-tenth off [Max] Verstappen [in Monaco GP qualifying],” he mentioned.

“Typically [the media] are leaping on the drivers 5 minutes after qualifying, and I can completely perceive their frustration, however the feedback that they’re making half-an-hour later are a bit totally different.

“It isn’t concerning the qualifying for me, if we’re affected by one thing, it’s [a lack of] consistency over the lap, over the race or from nook to nook and it is the place we have now to enhance however primarily for the race, however we’re engaged on it.

“We made a good step, however it’s true that in Miami we had been too inconsistent, however we carried out nicely and the primary stint of Carlos [Sainz] was an excellent one, so we have now to grasp this and are available again stronger.

“It isn’t that we’re off the tempo [due to] potential [of the car], however let’s examine later for the idea.”