Max Verstappen and the Monaco barriers
Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur believe Max Verstappen has made more “mistakes” in the past two races than in the course of the past three seasons – but has backed their Red Bull rivals to bounce back.
With Red Bull being placed under increased pressure at the front of the field of late, the Ferrari team boss explained that may have come as a result of the team being pushed more to perform after a long period of domination.
Fred Vasseur on recent Max Verstappen ‘mistakes’ after Monaco victory
Additional reporting by Sam Cooper
On Sunday, Charles Leclerc achieved a heartfelt victory at his home race, resulting in both him and Vasseur plunging into the Monaco harbour while Ferrari joyously celebrated their second triumph of the season.
With eight races completed in 2024, we have already witnessed four different Grand Prix winners. This surpasses the total count of three different race winners throughout the entire 2023 season. It seems that the competition has intensified behind Red Bull, as the pack has closed in.
Verstappen explained his car felt like a ‘go-kart’ as it struggled to manage the kerbs and bumps of Monaco and Imola recently, with team principal Christian Horner adding the team will look to address that in the coming races.
Vasseur downplayed Ferrari’s expectations after their victory over the weekend, but he highlighted the recent mistakes made by the reigning World Champion. He also anticipates Red Bull to quickly regain their strong form.
Vasseur, when questioned about Ferrari’s potential to challenge Red Bull after their victory in Monaco, responded to the media, including PlanetF1.com, stating, “I prefer not to make any conclusions regarding this weekend.”
However, upon examining the past two weekends, it seems that Max committed a greater number of errors or retirements in Imola compared to the entirety of the previous three seasons.
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However, once they are required to exert more effort, if you remain within your comfort zone in terms of strategy and everything else, you avoid making mistakes – and I believe that’s the situation they were in.
Currently, it is not necessary to reach a definite conclusion, but I anticipate their return in the near future, with renewed strength. However, it is crucial to acknowledge that the path ahead may not be smooth until the very end.
Vasseur elaborated on the upcoming Canadian Grand Prix, highlighting the distinctive characteristics of the track as compared to Monaco. However, he anticipates intense competition among various teams for the rest of the season.
In terms of speed and downforce, Canada is likely the complete opposite of Monaco. However, Canada also features the unique characteristic of having numerous low-speed corners and chicanes, particularly with the presence of kerbs.
Although there are certain corners that resemble Monaco, if you analyze our overall performance, we were strong in Melbourne, excelled in Imola, and adapted well to the diverse compounds, tarmacs, and layouts in Miami.
I believe the competition will remain intense throughout, with certain cars performing better on specific tracks.
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