“Cannot Afford to Say Next Year for 15 Years”: Ferrari’s Embarrassing State of Affairs Blasted by Former F1 Mogul as Frederic Vasseur Faces a Double Edged Sword

For over a decade, F1 fans around the world have been left scratching their heads over the biggest mystery in the sport: why can’t Ferrari seem to secure a championship win? There are different problems in the team, but certainly, the driver pairing isn’t one of them. In the past few years, Ferrari has come tantalizingly close to victory, as seen in their 2022 campaign, where they had the car and their golden boy, Charles Leclerc, leading the charge.

The pressure is on Ferrari to break their drought. Year after year, the Tifosi thought the following year was the team’s to grab. Yet, as the competition heats up and rival teams push the limits, the question on everyone’s mind remains: will Ferrari finally find the formula for success, or will the championship drought continue for years to come? The hopes have been pinned on Frederic Vasseur after Mattia Binotto was let go. But for the Frenchman, things have turned out way more complicated than anyone would’ve anticipated.

In the stable, the dynamics are also reportedly changing with a dip in performances from the Monegasque. Much like all the drivers wanting to be the preferred or #1 driver for the team, Leclerc’s hopes have taken a massive hit to remain so after a disappointing weekend in Miami. Even though Carlos Sainz was also struggling, he has still managed to outperform the supposed team favorite, Leclerc, in four out of five weekends so far. The ball’s in Sainz’s court now as he gets backing from a former F1 mogul with a tainted name, Flavio Briatore, who often voices his opinion on the affairs of the Prancing horse.

The Italian businessman quoted by Formula Passion wrote in The Reformist: “Ferrari is far behind, the car has countless problems, starting from consumption and Charles Leclerc, as we have also seen in Miami, is not competitive, unlike his teammate Carlos Sainz who defended himself well.”

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“Ferrari cannot afford to say ‘ next year ’ for 15 years, it is not standing. Frederic Vasseur is just a man on a team. He is trying to rebuild an adequate technical structure and at the same time not to lose engineers,” he concluded, praising Vasseur for trying to keep the band together.

Ferrari on the right track to become champions?

Firstly, the patience of Tifosi is to be commended. Now, it brings us to the question that’s on everybody’s mind. Is Frederic Vasseur the right man to lead the team? Is he the man to make the team a champion once again? While the answers to this question may differ, Charles Leclerc believes that he is right.

In an interview with the AS, the #16 driver says, “Do I think that with Fred I can become World Champion? I honestly feel that he is the right person to put Ferrari back in front. I have only been with Mattia and Fred, and I can say that the approach is very different. But I will not go into details.”

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The satisfaction with this answer may differ from person to person. However, to see the results of Vasseur’s management, the Tifosi may have to say “next year” a couple more times.