The fourth place obtained by Charles Leclerc, which then turned a podium after the stewards determination relating to George Russell’s automotive being discovered underweight throughout checks, has left an reverse ambiance within the Ferrari camp.
On one hand, Charles Leclerc stated he was upset as a result of he anticipated at the very least to have the tempo to struggle with the Mercedes vehicles, whereas then again, Frederic Vasseur is optimistic concerning the end result at present, although on the monitor they didn’t even attain the rostrum regardless of ranging from pole. Essentially the most disappointing facet is that among the many high three finishers, there was just one doubtlessly sooner automotive, Oscar Piastri’s: whereas it’s true that George Russell stunned everybody together with his one-stop technique, the truth that they might not compete with Lewis Hamilton is the facet that weighed probably the most in a race from which Charles Leclerc himself anticipated extra.
On Friday, Ferrari appeared within the working for the rostrum, however the adjustments made by Mercedes in a single day from Friday to Saturday paid off, serving to the drivers obtain a win inside attain with each of its drivers. Certainly, past Russell’s shock, Hamilton led the race after taking the lead within the early laps, at all times managing to keep up a security margin.
Nonetheless, Fred Vasseur is glad with the tempo proven, particularly within the first two stints, throughout which Leclerc contended for the victory longer, staying inside three seconds of the hole. A niche that may have clearly made it tough to give you one thing within the final stint with no tempo benefit, however nonetheless not so giant after greater than half the race. The actual fact is that all through the Grand Prix, these tenths had been lacking to maintain the primary place gained on Saturday.
“Most end result I don’t know, however when it comes to efficiency, it was a great race. We had been all stunned by the very low degradation of the exhausting tires and the very excessive consumption of the mediums. I feel Russell did the proper technique, I don’t know if it was intentional, however in the long run, all of us completed inside ten seconds,” commented the Group Principal of Ferrari on the finish of the race to Sky Italia.
“Everybody had enormous degradation on the mediums, apart from the primary laps as a result of we had been managing, however after we needed to push on the mediums, like Perez within the second stint, we pushed and got here again to the pits. Firstly of the race, everybody manages a bit extra, and the scenario appears higher than actuality.” = the French supervisor identified.
Solely within the final a part of the race did the hole improve considerably, rising to nearly eight seconds on the finish, however this was additionally weighed down by two different elements, specifically the overtaking by Oscar Piastri and having to defend on the finish from Max Verstappen and Lando Norris: “It’s extra a query of the way you push and handle the stint. The degradation most likely stunned us a bit, you then concentrate on defending out of your opponents, maybe utilizing the power otherwise. However the tempo was constant all through the stint. Perhaps you lose just a few tenths on account of ongoing battles, but it surely wasn’t a lot on account of degradation,” added Fred Vasseur.
Past the ultimate end result, which sees Mercedes obtain the victory, Frederic Vasseur repeats that he’s glad with Charles Leclerc’s efficiency: “I’d have most well-liked us to make the double reasonably than end fourth, however when it comes to efficiency, we discovered a great tempo. Now it’s a matter of a few tenths, we’ve got to place all the things collectively from the following race.”
On this final level, Frederic Vasseur reviewed the primary a part of the 2024 Components 1 season with what must be the objectives for the second a part of the championship. The bouncing drawback has been considerably contained in comparison with what was seen within the Spain-Austria-Nice Britain trio, an indication that the updates delivered to Budapest have one way or the other helped to scale back the issue, even when it has not been fully eradicated. Ferrari’s hope is that the brand new updates coming within the second a part of the championship will permit them to make a small however essential step ahead to place the SF-24 within the struggle to grab alternatives like at present.
“For now, if we make a comparability with twelve months in the past, we’ve got made a great step ahead. Furthermore, we’ve got 4 groups now preventing for podiums and victories, which is constructive for the championship. All the things is open for the second a part of the season as a result of even making a small leap ahead of 1 or two tenths could make a giant distinction,” stated the Group Principal on the finish of the Belgian Grand Prix on the 7.004-kilometre Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps.
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