Ferrari

Ferrari boss suggests F1 team have GIVEN UP on 2023 season

In what has already been a tough 2023 for Ferrari, things may be about to get worse

Sam Cook Digital Journalist

Sports Journalist who has been covering motorsport since 2023

Sunday 20 August 2023 08:27

Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur has suggested that his team have given up on a crucial aspect of development for their car this year.

It's been a below-par season for Ferrari, with the team languishing in fourth in the constructors' championship and their two drivers Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz sitting fifth and seventh respectively in the driver standings.

With just three podiums on the board in 2023, the team have regressed from where they were in 2022, when they were challenging Red Bull for race wins.

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Now, team boss Vasseur has delivered more bad news for Ferrari's 2023 season, by suggesting that the team have switched their attention to next season.

"For this season we stopped development in the wind tunnel at the end of July," he told Gazzetta dello Sport.

"We have pieces already approved and in the works that we will take to Qatar or Austin."

Quiet optimism for 2024

Like with most teams, the objective for Ferrari in 2024 will be to close the gap in performance to the far superior Red Bull.

Red Bull have dominated the 2023 season, winning all 12 races so far

Having been fairly close to Red Bull last year, Ferrari now look almost as far away from winning a race as they did in 2020 and 2021.

But there is some optimism for 2024 from Vasseur, and starting to focus now on next season will certainly help their chances.

"For the single-seater for 2024, we are still at the philosophical concepts. The numbers say that you have to be aggressive in the project but with simulations and equations we are already at the maximum.

"We have to think differently, find margins thanks to which the drivers can ride without always being at the limit. And in any case, the deadline for the new red is not the end of the year.

"We have to be ready for Bahrain in March. We still have many months ahead of us."