03 August 2023 , 14:57
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The CEO of Ferrari has conceded that their F1 performances have not met expectations in 2023 despite a rare podium finish for Charles Leclerc on Sunday.
The Monegasque man was third behind the dominant Red Bull duo of Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez in Belgium, a rare bright spot in what has otherwise been a brutal season for the Italian giants. And that's despite the appointment of a new team principal in Fred Vasseur, who came from Alfa Romeo at the end of 2022 following the departure of Mattia Binotto.
But his short tenure has thus far been littered with problems, with Leclerc himself demanding a crisis meeting with bosses after a difficult start to the campaign. Indeed, the future of the 2022 runner-up in the drivers standings' continues to be the source of intense speculation, with him lamenting the "weird behaviour" of his car last month.
And now Benedetto Vigna, CEO of Ferrari, has seemingly sent a warning to Vasseur and co that results have not been good enough: "Racing is our heritage and, more than ever, a stimulus to further innovate," he said, via Italian media outlet .
"It is the will to progress that we must always keep alive, it is the legacy of our founder that we must constantly cultivate with trust humility. With this spirit we started the F1 World Championship, but with a level of competitiveness lower than our expectations".
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Vigna however, did acknowledge the display at Spa-Francorchamps, despite Carlos Sainz failing to finish: "In some recent races, such as last weekend at Spa-Francorchamps, we have seen some signs of improvement. Clearly we want to continue improving and we are working day and night to make our car more competitive"
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Frederic Vasseur has been under intense pressure at Ferrari (Getty Images)Leclerc is now fifth in the standings' amid three podium finishes, a full 49 points behind Lewis Hamilton in fourth place. Sainz meanwhile, is down in seventh, having failed to make the trop three himself in the 12 Grand Prix races so far.
And in the constructors' competition, the Scuderia lie fourth, a massive 312 points behind Verstappen and co at Red Bull. They've also seen Mercedes and Aston Martin surpass them so far this year, amid a string of technical and tactical issues that continue to plague them in F1's new era of regulations.
It is now 16 years since Ferrari won the last of their 15 drivers' championships, when Kimi Raikkonen prevailing in dramatic circumstances in the final race from Hamilton, who was in his debut season at McLaren. Upon being appointed last December, Vasseur outlined his ambition to strongly challenge for the Championship again.