Ferrari staff principal Frederic Vasseur says he’s “not fearful” about Lewis Hamilton’s struggles in his closing season with Mercedes.
Hamilton formally joins Ferrari within the new 12 months after a season during which George Russell comprehensively outperformed the seven-time champion in qualifying.
Russell completed 22 factors forward of Hamilton within the championship as every Mercedes driver gained two grands prix.
Vasseur admitted Hamilton had had however added that he was “by no means, by no means, by no means fearful in regards to the scenario”.
The Frenchman pointed to Hamilton’s “excellent races” in Las Vegas and Abu Dhabi on the finish of the season and stated he believed that had an impression on his performances. Hamilton signed for Ferrari in January, greater than a month earlier than the 2024 season began.
Vasseur stated: “I’m actually satisfied, and I do not wish to blame Lewis or Mercedes, that this example will not be straightforward to handle and I can perceive if it’s not going nicely you possibly can undergo on this relationship.
“He was not very nicely in his thoughts and he was clear about this in Brazil however he additionally did very nicely on the final couple of occasions and I’m not fearful in any respect.”
Managing Hamilton and Leclerc
Vasseur, who was talking at Ferrari’s conventional Christmas media lunch, was instrumental in Hamilton becoming a member of Ferrari due to the pair’s lengthy relationship since they labored collectively within the junior classes 20 years in the past.
Requested how he would deal with the aggressive stress between Hamilton and his new team-mate Charles Leclerc, Vasseur stated this was “all the time a problem” between drivers in the identical staff, however that it will push Ferrari ahead.
“Charles, Lewis, I’m not significantly fearful about this,” Vasseur stated. “They’ve an enormous mutual respect, they know one another, they’ve been speaking about this for months now.
“It’s a lot better to struggle for first and third or second and third than to struggle for nineteenth and twentieth. It’s a good situation for a staff to have this sort of dialogue and method and I’m actually satisfied once more that the efficiency of the staff is coming from the emulation between the 2.”
Assimilation into Ferrari
Vasseur admitted that Hamilton and the staff confronted one other “problem” in getting up to the mark collectively within the two and a half months between his becoming a member of and the beginning of the season in Australia on 14-16 March.
Hamilton is because of drive a 2023 Ferrari early within the new 12 months as he begins his work to assimilate into his new staff.
Vasseur refused to provide a date for this check, saying it was “carefully linked to the climate”. It’s anticipated to be at considered one of Ferrari’s check tracks, Fiorano on the manufacturing unit or Mugello in Tuscany.
Ferrari haven’t given any additional particulars of their plans for Hamilton earlier than the official pre-season check in Bahrain on 26-28 February.
“It isn’t straightforward however he’s coming together with his personal expertise,” Vasseur stated. “He isn’t the rookie of the 12 months, I’m not fearful in any respect about this.
“We all know that we have now loads of process to assimilate throughout this couple of days however he’s skilled sufficient to do it.
“We’ve the benefit to have the simulator and he’ll be capable of do a race simulation and a qualifying simulation within the simulator and to be totally ready with the steering wheel and all of the particularities of the automotive. However I’m not fearful about this and it’s not the largest problem.”
Hamilton is anticipated to maneuver right into a property in Italy, seemingly in Milan, as a part of his swap to Ferrari.
Vasseur, who like Hamilton doesn’t converse Italian, stated he had no recommendation to provide him when it comes to adapting to Italy and the brand new staff aside from “to keep away from to take an excessive amount of pasta, for the ballast”.
Wanting ahead to 2025
Ferrari will launch their 2025 automotive in Maranello on 19 January, the day after F1’s first official “season launch”, which is being held on the O2 in London.
Vasseur stated Hamilton would don’t have any additional public engagements for the staff.
“We’ve to be totally centered on the season,” he stated. “It will likely be a really tight interval between the primary day and the launch and I wish to have everyone totally centered on efficiency.
“We’ve the launch of the championship and the launch of the automotive. It’s two occasions and for me it’s far an excessive amount of. Or it’s far sufficient, as an instance. I wish to be centered on growth and efficiency and never on the present.”
And Vasseur spoke for the primary time about his talks with Hamilton final winter that led to him becoming a member of Ferrari.
“In 2023 we gained extra races than Mercedes so it was not tough to persuade him Ferrari can be a superb venture,” he stated.
“He had the venture to drive for Ferrari in his thoughts for a minimum of 22 or 23 years as a result of we had been discussing this in 2004. It was not too tough.
“Typically additionally it is a matter of coincidence or to align all of the planets, that he’s available on the market, that Ferrari have a seat accessible and so forth. The contact was a simple one. We began to debate one 12 months in the past and it was not tough to persuade him.”
Ferrari misplaced out on the constructors’ championship to McLaren by 14 factors on the closing race of 2024 and Vasseur stated he anticipated subsequent season to be one other shut struggle between the highest 4 groups, together with Crimson Bull and Mercedes.
“What we have now to do to win subsequent 12 months is about particulars,” he stated. “We made good enhancements in each space however we’re nonetheless lacking 14 factors within the championship. It’s a lot and nearly nothing, it’s a DNF, a race incident, a strategic determination.
“We’re talking about particulars on each single pillar. Each single mistake, each determination will make an enormous determination. I’m certain subsequent 12 months the championship shall be additionally tight and we won’t let one level run away.”
