Ferrari is preparing to regain top level
The Ferrari SF-23 was poorly designed from the beginning. Frédéric Vasseur is trying to change the direction that the season was supposed to take and is preparing to recruit engineers in anticipation of future World Championships.
Ferrari is very far off compared to last season. The team based in Maranello has 122 points and is only in 4th place in the constructors’ championship. For the Italian media outlet Corriere, Frédéric Vasseur provides an update on the future of the Italian team.
The car of 2023 is poorly born, declared the director of Scuderia Ferrari, who arrived at the beginning of the year. I don’t want to blame anyone, but last year, some choices were made. From the first kilometers at Fiorano, and then during the tests in Bahrain, we understood that they were not working. The simulations had underestimated certain negative effects on the car’s behavior. Therefore, we were forced to seek a compromise between performance and driving pleasure.
The Italian team had to wait until Canada to see any progress. In Canada, we made progress, we understood from the first day what was wrong with this car, fast in qualifying, on one lap, but difficult to drive in the race. A delayed response because changing the process is complex, said the Frenchman to Corriere. « We had to “turn the ship,” change the direction of the developments. It takes months, the process started in March in the wind tunnel after discovering the problems. »
For the team with the prancing horse, the Austrian Grand Prix is the test to find out if the team is on the right track: « It’s the opposite of Canada, if we do well there too, we will have confirmation that we have taken the right path. » For Frédéric Vasseur, a victory is complicated but it could happen this weekend on the Spielberg track, the place of Ferrari’s last victory. « If we had started in front in Montreal, it would have been possible (to win). Let’s see now if we can do it in Austria. »
Ferrari wants to win as quickly as possible
The Italians’ aim is to quickly find their way back to victory. The team is headed in the right direction, according to their manager. But it is only through hard work that the team will win.
« It’s not a matter of patience, weeks, months or years. But of sensations. They are good now because I am starting to see progress. Winning must always be the goal », says Fred Vasseur.
The stable is preparing for the future, it must recruit high-quality engineers to become the best team again.
There are no names (of engineers to recruit), it’s part of a broader strengthening plan. It’s the same in F1. Do you want a junior engineer? He will be available in 6 months. Do you want a senior one? You’ll have to wait at least 18 months. This one, whom I consider a “top guy,” will work on the 2025 machine, explains the 55-year-old Frenchman.
For the next car, Ferrari will once again rely on Enrico Cardile, its technical director. The former director of Sauber F1 wants to emphasize that reinforcements need to arrive in all departments of the team. « Reinforcements need to arrive in every department, in some of them, we are understaffed compared to Red Bull, Mercedes, or Aston Martin. I am also advocating for bringing in people from outside the Ferrari world, who can bring external knowledge. »
« Ferrari needs to grow faster than the others. It’s time to accelerate, which is why we are hiring and investing in the future, » concludes the former engineer for Corriere.
