Frederic Vasseur gives verdict on Ferrari star's 'LESSON'

Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur — Photo: © LAT Images

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Vasseur gives verdict on Ferrari star's 'LESSON'

The driver has impressed his boss so far this season

Sam Cook Digital Journalist

Sports Journalist who has been covering motorsport since 2023

Saturday 9 September 2023 16:57

Ferrari team boss Frederic Vasseur is happy with the 'step forward' that his driver Carlos Sainz was able to take at the Italian Grand Prix.

It was a successful weekend for the Spanish driver, who managed to take only his fourth ever pole position ahead of the supremely quick Red Bull of Max Verstappen on Saturday, before converting it into his first podium of the season in front of the team's adoring home fans.

Indeed, he was even able to keep Verstappen at bay for the first 14 laps of the race, defending stoutly to send the Tifosi wild at Monza.

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Such has been Red Bull's dominance this season, that was the most amount of laps that a non-Red Bull driver has led in the whole of 2023, which has led to a lot of praise for the 29-year-old.

None more so than from his boss, who has been very impressed with Sainz's consistent performances this season.

The Spaniard is currently sat in fifth position in the drivers' world championship, six points above his team-mate Charles Leclerc and, despite only having one podium to Leclerc's three this season, his nine top six finishes compared to Leclerc's six has been the difference.

“I am more than happy for Carlos because he has taken a step forward," Vasseur said.

"Not only in qualifying and the race, but also in the preparation for the weekend and from the first lap of FP1 he was there. It is a good lesson also for the rest of the year."

Hope for Ferrari future?

Sainz is currently leading his team-mate by six points in the driver's standings

Ferrari have clearly regressed in performance compared to 2022, when they were able to challenge Red Bull for race wins.

Nonetheless, they still have a driver pairing that is the envy of alot of other teams, and for Sainz to be leading his team-mate as it stands is brilliant for him as Leclerc is the one who is much more fancied to be a future world champion.

This season, the team are fighting with multiple other teams for a place in the top five at most races, and have only managed to achieve four podiums in the first 14 races of the season.

Their recent form has been good, however, and they have managed to climb up to third in the constructors' championship.

If they can maintain the same level of performance as we saw at Monza, they could even challenge Mercedes for that second position in the championship before the season is out.