Fred Vasseur: Ferrari 'pace is there' ahead of F1 season opener

Ferrari

Vasseur makes bold Ferrari claim following pre-season test

Fred Vasseur summarised what has been an up-and-down three days of pre-season testing for Ferrari.

Jack Walker

Saturday 25 February 2023 20:56 Updated: 21:39

Fred Vasseur had an up-and-down first three days of pre-season testing as Ferrari boss.

Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc both racked up the miles, with the Monegasque driver topping the timesheet in the final day of pre-season testing’s morning session.

Testing wasn’t without drama for the Tifosi, however, as Sainz was caught up in a bizarre practice start-gone-wrong in the Sakhir sun.

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His nose also popped out of place and there appeared to be a bit of bouncing with the Spaniard's car in the opening session as well.

“It was a bit up and down but when we are able to put everything together, the pace is there,” said Vasseur.

“We have to stay calm. In winter testing, no one knows what anyone else is doing; the level of fuel, engine mode and so on. The most important [thing] is to be focused on yourself, to do your job, and then we’ll see next week, not before.”

The three-day shakedown is intense, but goes by far too quickly for engineers and fans alike. Vasseur, though, is pleased with what his team have accomplished.

“For sure you want to do more because three days is short for everybody. The drivers would like to stay for a week more but it is what it is and so far it went pretty well for all of us. We ticked not all the boxes but a large part of it so now focus on next week.”

Making changes for the 2023 season

While making changes as the new team principal will take time to come to fruition, the Frenchman says there are lots of promising signs for the season ahead.

Vasseur said: “We have to be realistic and [know] it’s not in four weeks that you can change something and [it] will take time for sure. It is a long process. I need to know everybody, I need to know the process, I need to know the pit wall. There’s a lot of things to digest.

“The main target was getting as much mileage under our belt as possible and we did that, although it’s also true that you always want to do more and have more time. But it’s the same for everyone.

“Everything is going well, the mood is perfect [and] we are in a good shape today. We know that the championship will be long, it will be difficult, but everybody has the same target.”