Vasseur fails to rule out a Ferrari world championship charge: 'We'll see'
F1 News
Ferrari secured a very popular home victory in Monza on Sunday in front of thousands of adoring Tifosi. Charles Leclerc outsmarted the McLarens by pitting just once in a race which the papaya team looked most likely to win, and now sit just 39 points behind first-placed Red Bull in the constructor's championship. This begs the question, can Ferrari win the 2024 constructors title? Team boss Fred Vasseur weighed in after celebrating Leclerc's victory at the 'Temple of speed'.
Vasseur: 'First time in my career the F1 grid has been so tight'
"My thought is that first, I have to enjoy tonight. Enjoy the party. Then we'll be focused on Baku, but I think it would be a huge mistake to try to draw any conclusions or to change the plan," Vasseur began in the paddock. "It's a very long way until Abu Dhabi. We have something like 450 points on the table. It's so tight, the fight. Honestly, I spent a couple of years on the pit wall, but it's the first time I think in F1 we have this situation where eight drivers can win the race without an accident or a big crash," he explained.
The Frenchman also praised how close Formula 1 truly is at the moment, highlighting a specific example. "Four teams are able to win or to be on the podium, and it's changing from session to session. For me, the most impressive was probably Spa, where you had McLaren in FP1 and Red Bull in FP2. We started from the pole, and Mercedes won the race. I had the feeling that it's almost like this everywhere, except Lando, who dominated last week in Zandvoort."
A 'huge fight' is expected
Vasseur is also expecting many entertaining races from now until the end of the season. Of course, he will hope Ferrari can capitalise in each of the remaining eight, but perfection when the grid is this competitive is almost impossible. "Until the end of the season, it will be like this. It will be a huge fight. It's true that with eight cars, with this kind of competitiveness, that one team can do a 1-2 and the other one a 7-8. I don't want to speak about DNFs. This can make a huge difference in terms of points. Let's be focused on Baku first, and step by step, we'll see." The Frenchman concluded.
Fans must be excited by the prospect of four teams and eight drivers in the fight for race wins for the remainder of the 2024 season, but Vasseur will be hoping Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz are the ones who can capitalise.
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