06 September 2023 , 07:00
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Frederic Vasseur showed his pride in Charles Leclerc after the Italian Grand Prix in a touching moment live on air.
Ferrari, like everyone else on the grid this year, have been unable to compete with Red Bull. Still, as is always the case, the passionate Tifosi expected something special at Monza.
Despite pole position for Carlos Sainz, the Scuderia was unable to deliver a dream victory with Max Verstappen flexing his muscles on race day. And Sergio Perez's pace proved too strong for them as well as Ferrari's tyre degradation issues appeared again.
But Sainz and Leclerc gave their all to finish third and fourth respectively, probably the best result they could have hoped for. And it was enough to make the home crowd proud, as evidenced by the noisy podium celebrations.
Knowing only one podium spot was likely to be on offer, Sainz and Leclerc fought hard to beat one another. Ferrari warned the latter not to make any risky overtake moves for fear of both crashing out, but he wasn't ever going to give the Spaniard an easy run at third place.
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They fought firmly – almost colliding on more than one occasion – but ultimately fairly. It meant team principal Vasseur still had a smile on his face after the race as he spoke to F1 TV.
And that grin turned into a laugh as Leclerc interrupted that interview to put two fingers to the Frenchman's neck and feel his pulse. In response, Vasseur laughed and brought Leclerc in for a warm embrace to show his pride in the way he had raced.
Vasseur laughed at Leclerc's joke and gave him a warm embrace (F1 TV)Later asked why Ferrari had not done more to minimise the risk of Sainz and Leclerc crashing into one another, Vasseur said he felt he owed it to the drivers and to the fans to allow them to fight. "If I froze the position you will have exactly the same question – why did you freeze the situation?" he responded.
"For sure, it's much easier to comment when you have it at the end, but I think it was also the best way to thank everybody, the support of the tifosi and so on. I was not that comfortable to freeze something five laps before the end.
"I trust them, but I told them no risk at all. It's always relative, and I think that the notion of no risk is relative. But it's an opinion, and I'm quite proud of the decision, and of the job done by the drivers today. You can always say that it was a bit too much or not. But, in the end, it was why we finished the race and I'm more than happy with the outcome of this."