Mar.28 (GMM) Frederic Vasseur has turned down an opportunity to “judge” Formula 1 rival Red Bull for dumping Liam Lawson after just two grands prix.
Today, the Frenchman leads Ferrari’s iconic F1 team, but he is also well known for his days in junior formula management – helping to develop future stars like Lewis Hamilton and many others.
But when asked if he would ever drop a driver after two races, Vasseur told L’Equipe: “This is a typical Red Bull story, but you have no idea how difficult it is to assess the processes that are happening in a team.
“We don’t know what’s going on there and what made them take that decision. There could be billions of reasons for that, known only to the team and the individual driver. And sometimes even the driver doesn’t know them.
“So I would rather not comment,” Vasseur added. “I probably feel that it is too harsh to make such decisions after only two races. But at the same time, we do not have even 10 percent of the information, so it is better not to try to judge anyone.
“I hate it when people try to judge us, so I will not judge others.”
Privately, Vasseur may be thanking Red Bull for taking the focus off Ferrari in the wake of the Chinese GP – where both red cars were disqualified for technical infringements.
Vasseur admits Ferrari was too “aggressive” with its weight and floor wear settings and decisions, but former driver Rene Arnoux defended the Maranello based team.
“Ferrari wasn’t trying to cheat,” he told La Gazzetta dello Sport. “I categorically rule that out.
“If (Charles) Leclerc’s car had been ten kilos too light, or if Hamilton’s car had been in blatant violation, then ok, we’d have to question that. But this was a matter of nuance – a random anomaly.”
Others, however, criticise Ferrari for hyping up Hamilton’s arrival to stratospheric heights, only to ultimately fail to deliver.
“People say ‘Ah, you made a lot of noise with Lewis this winter’ – but no,” Vasseur hits back. “It was the press who made a lot of noise. We didn’t ask for anything. We took a photo. We didn’t even do an interview. We didn’t even do the launch in Maranello.”
Another result of the Hamilton mania is that Leclerc has been completely overshadowed.
“He is less in the spotlight, it’s true,” Vasseur said. “But that gives him more time for himself, to do other things, to be with his engineers. So there is some good in this situation.
“There will perhaps be a little frustration, a little jealousy, but I think Charles is intelligent enough to understand the situation and see the positive side of all of this. He can commit 100 percent to achieving the sporting objective.”