Jacques Villeneuve: Ferrari makes the same mistakes

1997 World Champion Jacques Villeneuve analyzed the events of the British Grand Prix and criticized Ferrari for making strategic decisions, which, according to Jacques, led to the loss of the winning double.

Jacques Villeneuve: “I saw a great race at Silverstone, which was not only full of spectacular battles on the first lap: the riders rode side by side through several corners in a row – it was beautiful to watch. However, I didn’t like Ferrari’s strategic decisions, as well as the crazy people going on the track.

Guanyu Zhou’s accident was shocking, but in the end everything looked worse than it actually was. You never want to see cars flying into protective fences – the moment was very dangerous, but Zhou was lucky.

I was also shocked by the photos of the protesters sitting on the track. How stupid do you have to be not to realize how dangerous this behavior is for themselves and the riders? Cars drive at 300 km/h, which is different from walking barefoot on the grass. This is ridiculous.

Of course I have to say a few words about Ferrari. What I liked about Leclerc racing was how fast he went with the damaged wing. Maybe the team should rethink the design, because even with a broken part, the car didn’t lose speed.

However, I don’t see the logic in the decision to let Charles on track on hard tires during the safety car. As a result, the team missed the winning double. Ferrari keeps making the same mistakes. Perhaps they hoped Sainz wouldn’t let Hamilton in, or they feared Hamilton wouldn’t stop when Leclerc drove into the pits. I understand Charles’ anger after the race – we saw another example of conservative strategy.

What Leclerc needs to work on is his communication style with the team. There is no doubt that Sainz was slower yesterday, but the team was able to confidently win the winning double. Leclerc addressed the team in a tone as if he had already been appointed chief driver, although he was not, not even under the contract.

It is too early to make such decisions because Carlos Sainz has a chance. He earned a lot of points and showed a high result – one failure from Leclerc, and Sainz will also participate in the battle for the title. Betting too early on one of the riders, when both have a chance at the title, can cost the team dearly. In 1999 Eddie Irvine gave Michael Schumacher a lot of points, which later was not enough for Eddie to win the championship.

I don’t think Ferrari liked Leclerc’s tone on the radio. Charles asked for a decision, and the team accepted it: “Sainz was told to pick up the pace.” This is enough to stop further radio conversations. There is no point in discussing everything in succession, because this is all on the air, which does nothing good for Ferrari. Such things are better discussed after the closed-door race.

In any case, the main result of the race was to increase the intrigue in the championship as the gaps were narrowed. Who knows, maybe this win will cheer Sainz up? Maybe he will win more pole positions and win races? And I’m really interested in how the pressure of fighting for the title will affect him.

He is a smart and sensible person behind the wheel of a good car. Some break under pressure and take their foot off the pedal, while others get a boost of energy in such a situation and become unstoppable, as in the case of Max Verstappen.

One thing is certain: Carlos Sainz is no longer a junior. He’s Carlos Sainz.”