Ferrari deliver ‘right call’ verdict despite clear F1 2024 performance step back

Ferrari were off the pace at Silverstone.

Ferrari boss Fred Vasseur believes the team made the “right call” to sacrifice their Silverstone chances in order to give them a better chance at success in the mid to long term future.

The Italian team finished a disappointing P5 and P14 in Silverstone and with Mercedes winning back-to-back races, there is no doubt that Ferrari have fallen to fourth in the current pecking order. But despite these problems, Vasseur believes sacrifices made in Britain will help them to get back on track sooner.

Fred Vasseur confident Ferrari are on the right track

In stark contrast to their performance two seasons ago where Carlos Sainz won for the first time, Ferrari were forced to watch on as Red Bull, McLaren and Mercedes all battled for the lead of the British Grand Prix.

Ferrari’s early season form means they still occupy second in the Constructors’ standings but with McLaren seven points behind and Mercedes 81, the Maranello outfit are looking over their shoulder more than they are looking ahead.

“It’s difficult to say this after the result of today, but I think we did a step forward this weekend, at least on the technical side,” Vasseur told media including PlanetF1.com at Silverstone. “We have a much better understanding of the situation and I think it’s encouraging for the last part of the season.”

Pushed on Ferrari’s momentum when it comes to their upgrades, Vasseur said they suffered a similar problem in 2023 but was confident they can get back on track.

“I think we had exactly the same situation last year, almost at the same stage of the season,” he said. “[It started in] Silverstone and we stopped it in Zandvoort, to do a complete scan of the situation. We had a good recovery.

“It’s tough in this situation because when you have an issue, you don’t have [the chance to do a] test, a proper test to fix it, or at least to understand it.

More from PlanetF1.com

F1 team principals: How long has each team boss been in charge?

Eight F1 team-mate pairings who couldn’t stand each other while they drove together

“And it’s quite difficult as a team sometimes to compromise or sacrifice Friday sessions when you know that you are losing a little bit of time during the weekend.

“And that to say ‘okay let’s forget about FP1, FP2 to be focused on mid term.’ And honestly, trust me that this decision as a team, it’s very difficult because you stopped the weekend.

“It was even worse in Silverstone with the weather but it meant that we put ourselves in a tough situation. But this we knew before and it was even worse with the fact that the Saturday morning was with wet tyres. That for sure was not helpful, but it is like it is.

“We made the decision before the weekend, and I think it was the right call to do it.”

Read next: Exclusive: The inside story of Williams’ incredible start to the F1 turbo hybrid era