Fred Vasseur acknowledges that Ferrari could have better managed the battle between Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc, which cost precious seconds at Zandvoort.
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Ferrari left the Dutch Grand Prix with Lewis Hamilton fourth and Charles Leclerc fifth, but with the feeling that a better result was possible. At the heart of the debates: several strategic decisions that caused frustration for both drivers during the race.
The most controversial situation occurred when Hamilton, thanks to significantly fresher tires, caught up at high speed with his teammate. The Briton was then gaining about a second per lap and wanted to continue his climb towards the Mercedes.
Ferrari initially planned to bring Leclerc into the pits, which would naturally have freed Hamilton. But the Scuderia ultimately asked the Monegasque to extend his stint by one more lap. A decision that created confusion and lost time that proved particularly precious at the end of the race.
Vasseur acknowledges a “confusion”
Fred Vasseur does not try to deny that the sequence could have been better managed. The Ferrari director explains, however, that the team had strategic reasons to change its plan at the last moment.
Leclerc was initially supposed to pit, but Ferrari noticed that a car was in the window where the Monegasque would have rejoined. The pit wall therefore chose to extend his stint.
“Charles was supposed to pit, but we extended by one lap and that created a kind of confusion. But I am not worried about this kind of thing.”
This decision had a direct consequence for Hamilton, forced to stay behind his teammate while he had a significant tire advantage. He eventually finished less than a second behind George Russell and third place.
Why Ferrari didn’t simply let Hamilton pass
From the outside, the solution seemed obvious: ask Leclerc to immediately give up his position to Hamilton before continuing his stint. Vasseur nevertheless believes the situation was more complex.
Ferrari had just asked its Monegasque driver to stay on track for one more lap. Immediately changing positions between the two cars would have added a new instruction to an already delicate sequence to manage.
“When Lewis caught up with Charles, we expected him to stop, then we had someone in the zone where he was supposed to rejoin. So we asked him to do one more lap.”
“You can’t ask him to do one more lap and change position in the middle of the straight. It’s not that easy.”
Hamilton had clearly made it known to his team that he wanted to take advantage of his fresher tires. After the race, the seven-time world champion felt that the time lost behind Leclerc probably made the difference in his attempt to grab the podium.
Another misunderstanding with Hamilton
This was not the only moment of confusion between Hamilton and the Ferrari pit wall. At another stage of the race, the team mentioned on the radio the possibility of fitting medium tires.
Hamilton asked if this option was really the fastest strategy. Faced with an answer he found too imprecise, the Briton reminded his team that they had all the necessary data to decide.
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Vasseur explains that Ferrari deliberately did not want to reveal its entire plan on the radio, to prevent rival teams from anticipating its strategy.
“We didn’t want to reveal the strategy on the radio at that moment, because we didn’t want to reveal to the competitors that we wanted to keep him on track until the end.”
Ferrari was notably considering the possibility that Hamilton could keep Kimi Antonelli behind him until the finish, an option that Vasseur still considers potentially relevant given the race’s dynamics.
Leclerc also frustrated with Ferrari
Hamilton was not the only unhappy Ferrari driver. Leclerc also questioned some decisions, notably the timing of his second stop.
The Monegasque wanted to extend his stint to create a tire gap with Russell and come back on the Mercedes with fresher tires at the end of the race. He therefore did not understand why Ferrari finally called him in relatively soon after the Briton’s stop.
Vasseur acknowledges that the strategic reading was particularly complex at Zandvoort, notably because the three compounds offered by Pirelli showed relatively close performance.
“Charles was also a bit frustrated at one point regarding the tire compound, but I think everyone was a bit lost with that.”
“The difference between the three compounds was very small in the race. So it was difficult to have a clear view of the strategy.”
Vasseur admits Ferrari could have done otherwise
The Ferrari director insists that strategic decisions are always easier to analyze after the race. Teams have to make their decisions in a few seconds, while monitoring their own cars and the strategies of their rivals.
He nevertheless acknowledges that the final result invites Ferrari to review some of its decisions. Hamilton failed less than a second from the podium after losing several seconds behind Leclerc, while the latter also feels that his own strategy could have been better optimized.
“You can always say after the race that you could have done better by proceeding in such and such a way.”
Vasseur finally explicitly concedes that the Scuderia had other options.
“But despite everything, yes, if I look at the race now, we could have done things differently.”
Ferrari will now have to learn from this episode before its most anticipated appointment of the season. The next Grand Prix will be held at Monza, where the slightest strategic hesitation will be closely scrutinized in front of the tifosi.
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