Ferrari turned a negative qualifying performance at the Canadian Grand Prix into a respectable result on Sunday, as the Italians finished fourth and fifth at the Circuit de Gilles-Villeneuve.
Charles Leclerc started P10 after he yet again failed to progress to Q3, whilst Carlos Sainz started 11th following a three-place grid penalty for impeding Pierre Gasly in Q1.
Both drivers made little progress in the opening stages of the race; however, they were promoted to fourth and fifth following a Safety Car at the start of Lap 14.
A Safety Car was required after George Russell collided with the wall on the exit of Turn 9, scattering debris across the track.
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The majority of the field saw this as an ideal opportunity to pit, something Ferrari seemingly didn’t agree with.
Leclerc and Sainz were promoted to fourth and fifth due to not pitting under the Safety Car, something which was immediately questioned.
To give the Maranello-based team credit, the strategy did work, given that Leclerc went on to finish P4 with Sainz in P5.
It marked just the second time this season that both Ferrari drivers having finished in the top five at the same race, signifying how challenging life at Maranello has been for new boss Frederic Vasseur.
The result kept Ferrari fourth in the Constructors’ Championship, a position Vasseur is working tirelessly to get the team out of.
He’s certainly been busy behind-the-scenes to improve the Italians, with him being in the process of building the team which he wants going forward.
This has seen him try to sign several personnel, something which has also happened due to losing high-profile figures.
He’s already lost David Sanchez and he’s about to lose race director Laurent Mekies, leaving Vasseur with big positions to fill.
Due to Ferrari being based in Italy this has been very challenging, with so many teams being based in the United Kingdom.
Vasseur gave the example that an employee could move from Red Bull to Mercedes and continue to live in the same home, something which is impossible for someone at Ferrari unless they’re switching from AlphaTauri.
“It’s not the same situation,” Vasseur told Sky Sports F1.
“You can move from Red Bull to Mercedes and keep the same house, keep the kids in the same school from the Friday to the Monday everything is perfect.
“If you want to come to Italy it’s a different approach. We have to change the family environment and so on.”
To improve, Ferrari have tried to sign the likes of Red Bull’s chief technical officer Adrian Newey; however, he’s rejected the Scuderia every time they’ve approached him.
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Despite this, Vasseur believes a strong group of people is more important than a single person, with the Frenchman noting that it’s not all about “big names”.
“I think we have a good structure. We have to reinforce the team for sure and we are on this way. It’s not just about big names,” Vasseur insisted.
“In the big teams today, we are roughly 1000 [employees] and I’m convinced [that] the weight of the group is much more important than the weight of the individual.”