Frederic Vasseur is confident that the balance of power in the championship can change quickly, as the speed difference between the cars of the leading teams is relatively small, and the results of the two previous stages of the championship indicate exactly this.
The race in Miami was won by Lando Norris, who chased Max Verstappen to the finish and Imola, but ultimately lost to the three-time world champion by just 0.725 seconds. At the same time, Charles Leclerc put pressure on the McLaren driver in the early stages of the race on the Italian circuit, but then fell behind a bit and finished third.
Commenting on how things could develop further, the Ferrari team boss said: “Firstly, we have only completed seven of the 24 races, which means there are still seventeen to go. Last year we were 100 points behind Aston Martin at this stage of the season, ultimately scoring 100 points more than them.
After seven races the battle in the championship never ends, and that is even more true this season, as the differences between the teams are very small. We have six or even eight cars that could theoretically compete for wins, which doesn’t happen that often.
This means that if you are not in the best shape, you can go from first position to 8th, and whoever finishes eighth will earn almost no points. The result is that the balance of power can change within one or two weekends.
Imagine someone has an accident, drops out of the race or something like that happens – the picture in the championship will immediately change. To be honest, I haven’t looked at the standings and I don’t know exactly how many points the teams are separated, but I think if one of them secures the winning double and the other doesn’t finish, then McLaren can be back among the favorites , or we can challenge Red Bull.”
Apparently Vasseur remembers the circumstances of the Australian Grand Prix, where Max Verstappen retired due to brake problems, the engine of Lewis Hamilton’s Mercedes failed and George Russell had an accident.
“Although there are still seventeen stages to go, let’s not think about the championship for the time being, let’s concentrate on the upcoming race in Monaco,” added the head of the Scuderia. “At least that’s what I tell my team.” We have to prepare for each race individually, but there will still be time to discuss the situation in the championship as a whole.”
Source: F1 News
I am Christopher Clyde, an experienced journalist and content writer with a passion for sports. I have been writing about Formula 1 news for the past five years and am currently employed as an author at athletistic.com, one of the top sports websites in the US.
