Ferrari team principal Frederic Vasseur admitted that Carlos Sainz’s victory last Sunday at the Singapore Grand Prix was a “bit emotional”, with it having been the Frenchman’s first as a team boss.
On his 159th Grand Prix as a team principal, Vasseur finally led a team to victory, with Sainz having controlled the race majestically from start to finish after starting on pole position.
It was Vasseur himself who represented Ferrari on the rostrum and collected the constructors’ trophy.
“Honestly, it was a strange feeling for me on the pit wall because I was not too much stressed the last couple of laps,” said Vasseur.
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The Frenchman believed that “Carlos was really under control of the situation.”
It’s been a very challenging year for Vasseur since he replaced Mattia Binotto in January, with Ferrari having started the season in very disappointing fashion.
There have been several blips throughout 2023, but all of a sudden Vasseur appears to be building something very position at the Maranello-based outfit.
They’ve gone from making endless strategic blunders to performing tactical masterclasses, making the team boss “more than proud” of the entire side.
“For sure on the podium it’s a bit emotional because it was the first one,” Vasseur said. “But at this stage I was more thinking about what we did from Jeddah.
“Jeddah was a tough weekend for us and we had a very good recovery after Jeddah. Good team work. I think we built up step-by-step the confidence and the pace and I’m more than proud for the job done by the factory and the team guys.”
As pleased as Ferrari are with the victory and the fact they are more than in the fight for second in the Constructors’ Championship, it’s now time to carry their momentum into the remaining seven rounds of the season.
The Italians have seemingly unlocked something extra out of the SF-23, with Vasseur admitting that they now have a “better understanding of the set-up of the car”.
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This will help them massively in their duel with Mercedes, given that the historic side are building in confidence.
“For sure this will help for the future. It’s a better understanding of the car, better understanding of the set-up of the car,” added the team boss.
“But I would say that mainly it’s a step forward in terms of confidence in everybody, that for everybody this is the best way to prepare the future.”