Mattia Binotto at Ferrari was working with the tools he had at his disposal. Frederic Vasseur, on the other hand, was tasked with a revamp. Though, he did not have constant supervision and micromanagement, no budget constraints, and most importantly time. The Frenchman has completely galvanized the team in just over a year. These rapid, substantial, and positive changes have earned his star man Charles Leclerc’s approval.
Asked if Ferrari is shaping up to be a dominant force and taking Vasseur’s vision, Leclerc affirmed. As highlighted by @Vetteleclerc on X, he said, “Definitely. I’ve always said and thought that Fred had the ability to have clear ideas about what he wanted. He is in the process of imposing his style on the Scuderia. I’m convinced that it will work.”
With all the reinforcements arriving at Maranello, do you think Fred Vasseur is building a dream team?
Charles: “Definitely. I’ve always said and thought that Fred had the ability to have clear ideas about what he wanted.
He is in the process of imposing his style on the…— tami. (@Vetteleclerc) May 17, 2024
Despite taking a step back in 2023, the Italian outfit is now the closest rival to the front-running Red Bulls. They have been consistently improving and until recently was the only team to beat the dominant Austrian outfit. In fact, Ferrari‘s project has become ambitious enough to poach the seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton.
The team back in Maranello has made steady progress and now have strengthened their squad further. Not just with Hamilton’s inclusion but by poaching two key personnel from Mercedes.
Seeing all these changes unfold in front of his eyes, Leclerc has complete faith in Vasseur’s leadership. After all, he has experienced both eras under the two team bosses firsthand. However, it’s not the personnel change that is making the real difference.
Frederic Vasseur explains the changes he made making the real difference
Since Frederic Vasseur’s appointment, there have been a lot of changes within the Maranello outfit. Apart from bringing in new people and letting some go, the 55-year-old has also shuffled a few roles.
However, as quoted by the NY Times, Vasseur has revealed the change in mentality made the biggest difference. More than the people, it’s the desire to win that has put them in this competitive position.
“Short term, it’s more about putting everything together, to have a good team spirit,” Vasseur said. “You can reorganize some departments, to change people, but it is more a matter of mind-set at the end. We did it quite quickly last year, and it’s paying off.”
“As a team principal, you can quickly change the mentality, the ability to take risks, instill self-confidence. With this kind of team spirit, let’s call it, we made a decent step forward.”
With the current output, the spirits would be at an all-time high. The Italian team will surely keep building on this momentum and by the end of next year, they will want to end their trophy drought.
The way Ferrari is progressing, they would want to win the lot in 2026 and start their own era of dominance. At least that’s what the ambition would be with one of the strongest driver lineups in the team’s history.
