Frederic Vasseur commented on the season’s final race, with Ferrari finishing the championship with a double podium.
Ferrari failed to make up the 21 points needed to surpass McLaren and finished second in the Constructors’ Championship. The second and third-place finishes by Sainz and Leclerc weren’t enough to close the gap, allowing McLaren to celebrate after 26 years, thanks to Lando Norris’ victory.
After the race, Frederic Vasseur commented on what happened during the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. Here are his words: “We’re all a bit disappointed. We did our best; it was a very good race from Charles and Carlos, and we weren’t far from McLaren in the end, just 14 points. But it wasn’t today that we lost the championship. We’re all satisfied with the work we’ve done and the improvements we’ve made throughout the season. But the final result is what it is.”
He then gave praise to McLaren: ““I have to congratulate McLaren because they did an exceptional job. We’re on the same trajectory; last year we had a good season, and this year we did better, fighting for the championship until the end. I have enormous respect for McLaren, so the first thing I have to say is congratulations to them. The second is that we need to focus on ourselves. We know we didn’t do a perfect job this season and there’s still room for improvement. We can improve in every single aspect, but I’m proud of what we’ve done at home and on track.”
Regarding the recently concluded season, Vasseur said: “Rating the season? Between 6 and 7 because there’s room for improvement everywhere, so we need to keep everyone motivated. One particular aspect I’m proud of is the team’s ability to bounce back. We’ve had difficult moments, but each time we’ve come back a little stronger and played as a team. One of the key moments was between the UK and Austria: we realized the update wasn’t working well, so we changed everything, and everyone was very open, with no internal battles. That’s very positive. It’s been a very positive season, with 5 wins compared to just one last year, and all the data is very positive.”