Formula 1 team boss Fred Vasseur compares the pressure at Ferrari to that of a smaller team and states: “It’s different, but no more or less “
Fred Vasseur has been active in Formula 1 since 2016 and has always held leading positions. However, the Frenchman has only been at the helm of a top team since last season, when he replaced Mattia Binotto as team principal at Ferrari.
Vasseur is already the fifth team principal of the Scuderia in nine years, which has been searching for sporting and structural consistency ever since. When asked about the pressure that comes with this, Vasseur says: “Well, the pressure in this position … I’m not saying it’s the same everywhere, but it’s a different pressure than when you’re in a small team, where sometimes it’s a matter of pure survival.”
“This pressure is gigantic when you know that the result of the last race, a tenth or eleventh or ninth place, decides whether you get the prize money or not. I think that is also mega pressure,” says Vasseur.
He remembers Brazil 2016 in this context: “When Manor finished eleventh and the door was closed the day after. I can imagine that the pressure is also enormous in a situation like that,” he says, drawing a comparison: “It’s different at Ferrari: the pressure comes more from outside.”
“It comes more from the Tifosi, but this pressure was very positive,” emphasizes the Ferrari team boss, citing this year’s Italian Grand Prix as an example.
“I was very surprised when we arrived in Monza. Monza was the beginning of the good part of the season for us, but also the end of the difficult part. We came in not really in good shape after Zandvoort was one of the most difficult races. And the tifosi out there, they were very, very supportive.”
“There were people without tickets just waiting for the drivers. Positive and always supportive. And that gives you a mega energy. It was a very good feeling for me, the whole weekend in Monza up to the podium,” Vasseur looks back. “I’ve been to Monza maybe 40 times in my life. And this was by far the best,” adds the Frenchman.