How two F1 superpowers have been revived by two key figures

Ferrari and McLaren are seriously competing for the world title again in 2024. Ferrari has already won two races and McLaren won the Miami Grand Prix. That fact that the two teams are fighting at the front again is thanks to their team bosses.

The character of a team is often a good reflection of its manager(s). For example, Red Bull Racing has been the rebel in the paddock for many years under the leadership of Christian Horner. Everything is done in its own Red Bull way. The music is louder in the garage, the hospitality is greater than anywhere else and partying goes hand in hand with performance.

That character radiates from the team boss, but also from the whole team. At Ferrari and McLaren, they have been searching for the right identity for years. For Ferrari, since the departure of Jean Todt. Since then, different people have been at the helm of Ferrari, but mostly those with the same fire as the Italians themselves working within the team.

Vasseur gives Ferrari a new lease of life

That combination rarely works. When emotion takes over at a leadership level, it is not surprising that things regularly go wrong for the rest of the team too. The fire and passion of the Italian staff must be kept somewhat in line so that the energy can be used appropriately. Jean Todt got that right and so does Fred Vasseur now.

Vasseur is a down-to-earth and sometimes slightly cynical man. He does not jump for joy when he wins, nor will he be in sackcloth and ashes when he loses. In press conferences, he is a clown. When his press officer says he should talk into the microphone better, he crams the whole microphone into his mouth when she is not looking. Vasseur is a humourous guy.

That down-to-earth attitude radiates to the team. Ferrari will maximise every Grand Prix in 2024. No longer are strategic blunders made and the drivers no longer seem to be under high stress either. Vasseur's level-headedness is crucial for this.

Besides, it is not that Vasseur never celebrates. The opposite is true. After victory in Monaco, he stands among all his singing mechanics and the sneaky smile is easy to see. It's great to see how he has taken this team by the hand.

Stella the ideal man for McLaren

At McLaren, it is no different. Under Ron Dennis, McLaren's identity was very clear. Everything was very corporate and literally very grey. Since the arrival of Zak Brown, things have changed somewhat. Whereas Brown likes to make himself heard as a media personality, the American has found a team boss who complements him on a very important part.

Brown is a racer himself and proved capable of doing the right deals commercially. Still, it is not calmness itself for the team. For instance, during the period with Honda, Brown was openly very critical of the Japanese marque and did not look for a good solution that Red Bull did find. However, first with Andreas Seidl and now with Andrea Stella, Brown has realised that, as CEO, he needs to leave the role of team boss to someone else.

And on that front, Stella is the ideal man for McLaren. Stella lives for Formula 1, has done almost every role within F1 and was too modest to want to take on the role of team boss. In everything, however, he is the ideal leader. Stella is calm, explains in great detail what and how he wants things and, like Vasseur, does not allow himself to be influenced by good or bad results.

Stelle ensures that McLaren keeps thinking and working step by step so that more and more progress can be made. McLaren is also maximising weekly due to one man: Stella.

What sets Stella and Vasseur apart from their rivals is their lack of political games. Whereas Wolff and Horner took every opportunity to knock each other down, Stella and Vasseur focused mainly on their own performance. In the piranha club, as F1 is not called for nothing, which is normally ruled by men with oversized egos, these are two rare creatures who, in their own way, take their teams to the top.