Deflecting Blame for Failures, Fred Vasseur Admits to Charles Leclerc’s “Frustrations” With a Silver Lining

No matter who you are or which team you drive for, the high-stress life of Formula 1 always results in a bit of misery. Nothing lasts forever in F1 and one or the other race weekend often results in a bit of frustration, even though one driver might seem immune to this. However, if you are a Ferrari driver, sadly, in the past couple of seasons, these scenarios have become more common. No one can forget the 2022 season, which saw Charles Leclerc grow increasingly frustrated, which seemed like after every race. These frustrating scenarios have disappeared in the current season and even Frederic Vasseur agrees. However, the Ferrari boss has an interesting way of looking at it.

The Frenchman believes life in F1 cannot be without frustrations and that is the law. No matter who it is and how good they are, there are always scenarios that result in angst among the drivers. For example, among many, Leclerc’s slow pitstop in Zandvoort is a perfect example. However, speaking on F1: Beyond the Grid podcast, Vasseur saw a silver lining in these continued frustrating scenarios.

When asked if there is a sense of frustration building up in Leclerc, Vasseur said, “Frustration is there but again I think it’s a very positive mood. I can’t imagine Charles after five years in F1 not frustrated with the current results. It has to be part of the motivation. You can’t be happy with this when the challenge was to win. It’s not that you have to blame someone and so the frustration has to be also the part of the motivation.” 

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Although these continued scenarios might come in the way of Leclerc’s long and potentially prosperous future at Ferrari.

Charles Leclerc reveals the difficulties coming in the way of his Ferrari extension

There is no doubt Leclerc’s extension is a number one priority for the Maranello outfit. In fact, some reports even suggested a mind-boggling $200 million five-year contract.

However, Leclerc is living in the present and not thinking about his future. The Monegasque needs a lot more than just money to be able to extend his Ferrari contract. He needs the difficulties he’s facing currently addressed first.

While addressing the topic of his extension, Leclerc said, “First, I’ve got a season to finish in 2023, but we can only go in another direction because at the moment the car is really difficult to drive. It’s just very, very difficult to be on the limit.”

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It’s about time Leclerc fights for the championship on a regular basis and lives up to his potential. A competitive enough car is imperative to his efforts. Let’s hope Ferrari can deliver in 2024 or they might lose their most loyal servant.