Ferrari F1 chief Fred Vasseur makes startling 'slow' Mercedes claim

Ferrari

Ferrari chief Fred Vasseur makes startling 'slow' Mercedes claim

Ferrari are looking to close the gap to Mercedes

Sam Cook Digital Journalist

Sports Journalist who has been covering motorsport since 2023

Wednesday 1 July 2026 14:58

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Ferrari F1 boss Fred Vasseur has joked that Mercedes are 'faster when they slow down', cheekily pointing towards a controversial incident in qualifying at the Austrian Grand Prix.

Seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton went into the Austrian GP weekend believing he was well and truly in a championship battle, having won the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix earlier in June and moving to within 41 points of championship leader Kimi Antonelli.

But Ferrari's form fell away at the Red Bull Ring, with Hamilton only able to claim a fifth-place finish in Austria, while his team-mate Charles Leclerc was even further back in eighth.

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Their race pace was just nowhere to be seen, although their one-lap pace in qualifying was still impressive.

It was thought that they had managed to claim a one-two in qualifying, before a late George Russell lap demoted them down to second and third.

Russell's pole position lap on Saturday had a hint of controversy surrounding it, however. Verstappen had crashed late in Q3, leaving his car stranded in the barriers at the penultimate turn of the circuit while Russell was on a flying lap.

The double-waved yellow flags - meaning abort the lap and be prepared to stop - were waved just 15 seconds after Russell had gone past, and Russell slowed down sufficiently enough on his pole lap to appease FIA stewards, claiming a stunning pole.

Now, Ferrari boss Vasseur has joked about the situation.

Vasseur jokes about Mercedes dominance

It was put to Vasseur by F1TV commentators: "You look like you might be missing some straight line speed in comparison to Mercedes still," to which the Frenchman said, chuckling: "Still? Even when they slow down?"

That comment had the punditry team in stitches, before Vasseur then continued: "Even when they slow down they are faster than us," referring to Russell's yellow flag incident during qualifying.

Ferrari were struggling even compared to Red Bull and McLaren in Austria, and that may just have cooled talk of a Hamilton title charge.

The team will now be looking to ensure that Hamilton has the best chance possible of claiming a 10th British GP win next time out at Silverstone.

F1 2026 British Grand Prix schedule

These are the confirmed Formula 1 session times for the 2026 British Grand Prix:

British Grand Prix Schedule
Session	Date	Local time (BST)	US Eastern (EDT)
Practice 1	Friday July 3	12:30-13:30	07:30-08:30
Sprint Qualifying	Friday July 3	16:30-17:14	11:30-12:14
Sprint	Saturday July 4	12:00-13:00	07:00-08:00
Qualifying	Saturday July 4	16:00-17:00	11:00-12:00
Race	Sunday July 5	15:00	10:00

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Written by

Sam Cook - Digital Journalist

Sam Cook is a talented young sports journalist and social media professional who now specialises in Formula 1, having previously worked as a football journalist and a local news reporter for a variety of different brands.

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F1 Ferrari Mercedes Fred Vasseur