Ferrari hasn’t been doing as well as expected in the 2024 season. In the recent race in Shanghai, their drivers, Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz, didn’t qualify as high as they wanted. They finished sixth and seventh in qualifying, which was far behind Max Verstappen.
During the race, they managed to move up a bit, but they couldn’t catch up to McLaren’s Lando Norris, who took second place. The team’s boss, Vasseur, admitted they made too many mistakes in trying to get their cars ready for the Shanghai track. They struggled to adjust their cars to the unique track surface in Shanghai, which affected their performance in qualifying.
Vasseur explained, “We didn’t have a clean weekend on our side, but we made collectively too many mistakes.” He mentioned that in such a competitive field, even small mistakes can cost a lot.
During the race, both Ferraris had a hard time with grip at the start. They lost positions to other drivers, which made their comeback harder. Sainz faced added challenges when a safety car came out in the middle of the race. He had already changed his tires earlier, so he was at a disadvantage compared to other drivers who hadn’t pitted yet.
Vasseur noted that they struggled more with the hard tires than the medium ones. This affected their performance in the later part of the race. Despite these challenges, he praised Sainz for managing the tires well during the long stint.
Ferrari knows they need to learn from their mistakes and improve. The competition in Formula 1 is tough, and even small issues can make a big difference in the outcome of races.
