Ferrari boss Frederic Vasseur reckons it was too early to tout Lewis Hamilton as a System 1 title contender for 2025 following his victory within the Chinese language Grand Prix dash race.
The seven-time world champion gained the Saturday race from pole in March on what was solely his second aggressive look for Ferrari.
However he has since struggled, being disqualified from the grand prix in Shanghai for a technical infringement earlier than solely ending seventh in Japan and fifth in Bahrain final weekend.
Vasseur was requested if there was something the group may do to assist Hamilton stand up to hurry together with his new squad, having joined from Mercedes over the winter.
He mentioned forward of this weekend’s Saudi Arabian GP: “Lewis is coming together with his personal expertise, with 20 years of F1 with totally different groups, with nearly 10 years at McLaren, 12 years at Mercedes, and it is all the time good to have somebody becoming a member of the group with this sort of expertise, with this sort of imaginative and prescient, and to assist us to enhance.
“It would not matter if it is Lewis, Charles [Leclerc, his team-mate] or Carlos [Sainz, who Hamilton replaced] final 12 months, we’re all the time attempting to do the most effective for the drivers and to discover a good stability for the automobile for him and we’re pushing on each automobiles precisely in the identical approach.
Frederic Vasseur, Ferrari
Picture by: Peter Fox – Getty Photographs
“I believe you [media] had been all a bit enthusiastic on the Saturday night in China, talking in regards to the [FIA end of season] prize-giving ceremony and so now we have to relax a little bit bit.
“We have now a brand new automobile, it isn’t the carry-over of the automobile of final 12 months and possibly that we’re struggling a bit extra to seek out the precise stability and the precise set-up.
“However that is the life of each single group on the grid, you recognize that generally for a matter of 1 tenth you may really feel that the stability isn’t a great one in any respect or not that unhealthy.
“The very optimistic level is that we’re working as a group, that the 2 drivers are pushing in the identical route.”
Vasseur was additionally requested if he felt Ferrari had all of the substances to achieve success and he identified that the competitiveness of the grid is making his life tougher.
He added: “The substances are all there, however now it is like cooking. You need to put the substances collectively on the proper stage.
“Actually, I haven’t got the sensation that we count on the most effective from the automobile up to now, however I’d say that it is true for us, but it surely’s true additionally for the others.
Lewis Hamilton, Ferrari
Picture by: Sam Bloxham / Motorsport Photographs
“Even [championship leaders] McLaren, with the step that they’ve in comparison with the remainder of the grid, generally you’ve one of many automobiles which is struggling a bit extra.
“A few years in the past, you had been capable of go to Q1 with a set of medium tyres and you probably did one lap and also you had been in Q2. At this time, even the highest groups, now we have to place a while on a set of softs.
“It signifies that the sector may be very, very tight, and every time that you simply make a mistake, you may lose 5, six positions. Then, the conclusion from the surface is that it is a drama.
“We’re extra centered on pure efficiency, it signifies that we have to keep calm and do the evaluation if we wish to enhance.
“It was one of many abilities of the group final 12 months to have the ability to capitalise and I hope that we’ll have the identical tempo this 12 months.”
Pictures from Saudi Arabian GP – Follow
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Ben Hunt
System 1
Lewis Hamilton
Ferrari
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