“Don’t Have To Kid Ourselves”: Witty Frederic Vasseur Drops Truth Bombshells on Ferrari’s Handicap Against Dominant Red Bull

Charles Leclerc was finally holding P1s in both the Friday evening quali and the Saturday sprint shootout after three terrible races. However, after exhibiting some impressive speed in the qualifying rounds, the team was unable to maintain the lead in the races and was found to be at a disadvantage when competing against the formidable Red Bull. Even though we are aware that Ferrari is making minor adjustments as the races progress to combat Red Bull, some of us are still curious about what is keeping them from advancing at their full speed. The team’s boss, Frederic Vasseur, known for his biting humor, appears to have chosen his wit to drop truth bombs on Ferrari’s handicap.

The Prancing Horse got off to a solid start at the Baku circuit. However, the Red Bull team outran them despite their team’s quickness on the single lap quali. After starting from the pole position in both races, Charles Leclerc finished third in the main GP and second in the sprint. When motorsports total questioned Frederic Vassuer about what he believed was slowing down Ferrari’s performance in the race, he replied while praising Leclerc’s skill, “I’m not quite sure because the pace was okay on one lap this weekend, also thanks to Charles.”

He went on to praise Red Bull for their deserving efforts and to explain how the team was only trying to deal with the tire that has the tendency to wear down too quickly. He said, “Red Bull pushed from start to finish in the race, while we managed a bit at the beginning to have a tire advantage at the end. But overall they were faster than us and we don’t have to kid ourselves.”

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Since the beginning of this season, Ferrari’s tires have experienced a high rate of tire deterioration. It was the primary cause of Leclerc’s inability to pursue the potent Red Bull. The Monegasque opened out on the subject when prodded

Following Frederic Vasseur’s savvy response, Charles Leclerc elaborates on the SF-23’s tire degradation

The SF-23’s tendency to wear down its tires faster than the rest of the grid has been one of several issues that Ferrari faces. This problem is made worse by the heavy fuel loads that were used throughout the Grand Prix. Additionally, the Prancing Horse may fare worse during long runs, which may have an impact on both their overall performance and the approaches used for pit stops.

The Bahrain circuit presented them with a bigger tire issue. However, at the Australian GP, the degradation was still better but not significantly better to compete with Red Bull. Even though Leclerc’s expertise made it tolerable at the Baku, the issue persisted. The Monegasque spoke candidly to reporters, including RacingNews365, while describing the tire life of SF-23.

Leclerc said, “We have to [manage tyres] with our car otherwise we kill them. And then we cannot get them back and then this has a big influence on our performance. So, I think we did the perfect management today. But, we are just not quick enough. Whether we lack at the beginning of the stint, or at the end of the stint, this we can change but yeah, we just don’t have enough performance for now. At the end, it [was] the same car [in the sprint and Grand Prix], I managed it differently, but actually the outcome doesn’t change.”

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The podium and 22 points extra may have given Leclerc’s campaign the much-needed lift. The crew must still work through a number of its problems, though. Do you think the Scuderia’s tenacious efforts will enable them to catch up with Red Bull?