Wasser: Disqualifications are not excluded in the future.

      Frederic Vasseur, the head of the Ferrari team, gave an interview to the reputable French newspaper L'Equipe, and it was mostly about Lewis Hamilton and the start of the season, which was far from the best for the Scuderia.…

      Q: How are you feeling after you returned to Maranello after everything that happened in China last weekend?Frederic Wasser: My job is to analyze the positive and negative sides in all situations in order to ensure the continued progress of the team. There are plenty of both over the course of each weekend, but this time both the pros and cons have been revealed to an extreme extent. Unfortunately, the first thing we all remember is what the last race was like.

      In general, we returned to the base in some frustration, because it seemed to us that we had made a step forward compared to Australia. It didn't affect the number of points scored, but I still think we're on the right track, and there were a lot of positive things: the pole and Lewis' victory in the sprint, as well as the way Charles ran Sunday's race.

      But I repeat, it is always necessary to analyze everything, even when things are going well, because in order to progress, you need to understand why this is happening.

      Q: How important is Hamilton's success in the sprint to assess his progress?Frederick Wasser: We can appreciate it anyway, and in general, the project related to Lewis' invitation is much broader than what happened in China. On the other hand, we have already begun to fulfill our part of our promises: we no longer have to answer the question: "When will you win your first pole or your first victory?"

      Of the three races that we have already held this year, it was in the sprint that our advantage was most obvious. By the end of Saturday's short race, it had reached almost seven seconds, despite the fact that its distance was only a third of the Grand Prix distance. That's the answer to some questions and doubts.

      Question: Don't you think that the press sometimes makes too much noise?Frederick Wasser: When you work in a sport like Formula 1, which attracts so much attention, we understand that this is inevitable. After such a weekend as we had in China, we are being criticized very harshly, but this is also part of the game.

      The interest of the press in Formula 1 is taking on a hypertrophied scale. And we must understand that we are waiting not only for applause, which we are happy about, but also for criticism – this is natural. The only thing that worries me is that this excessive media attention does not interfere with our work and does not affect the results.

      Q: 20 years ago, you worked with Lewis when he was a driver for your ART team and became the champion of the GP2 series. Has he changed during this time?Frederic Wasser: We've all changed over the past 20 years, but Lewis today and Lewis as he was in 2006 have a characteristic of being more demanding of himself. In the morning, he's the first to go for a run, the first to start training. This has always distinguished him. And since he makes such demands on himself, he demands a lot from others.

      He is distinguished by his ability to adjust everyone a little. He can make everyone who works with him do their best, because he demands the same from himself. In addition, he forces us to change our vision.

      We do everything our own way - not like Mercedes, Red Bull or McLaren. But despite this, we all finish in the top ten. Lewis has his own previous experience and his own requirements, he thinks differently. I'm not saying that his approach is better or worse, but it helps us.

      Question: It seems that Hamilton has changed since starting work at Maranello, he does not hide his emotions, admits that criticism hurts him ... Frederick Wasser: (interrupts) I don't know anything about that. But I am ready to emphasize that some criticism was... (pause) very harsh. If someone thinks that Hamilton is already exhausted, that he is no longer at that age, these are just manifestations of rudeness. Besides, this is a completely erroneous opinion. Just remember his last race last year, when he started from 16th position and finished 4th, and even overtook his teammate.

      Question: What about Leclair? Is he too worried about the increased attention to his partner?Frederick Wasser: He's really not the center of attention right now, that's right. But he has more time for other activities, including socializing with friends. So there are advantages here. Some feelings, some manifestations of jealousy are not excluded, but, in my opinion, Charles is an intelligent person and understands well what is happening now. And above all, he sees the positive sides of the situation, because he can focus 100% on achieving his sporting goals.

      Question: On Sunday, you were unhappy with the FOM's approach to the broadcast, since the radio exchange between Hamilton and his engineer was only partially broadcast, and Lewis' reaction was not there. Did you explain your position to the FOM later?Frederick Wasser: I don't have to do this. I've told the press what I think about it. And I don't want to say that the FOM acted intentionally... of course, it's better for the show if we forget that Lewis himself suggested skipping Charles.

      However, the number of journalists who know that the seven-time champion decided to switch positions with his teammate turned out to be slightly lower. In any case, it was a display of top-class professionalism on Lewis' part. It's not often you hear from a rider of this level: "I want to skip my teammate because he's faster than me."

      Question: The problem with the underweight of the car is always the result of many factors. But in 2023 in Austin, Ferrari already had a similar problem with Charles Leclair's car, and now it's ended with Hamilton's disqualification... Frederic Wasser: Right. Apparently, we took an overly aggressive approach to the car settings. But as it turned out, so it turned out. We are upset, which means that we strive to achieve the perfect result, but sometimes we go too far.

      Question: Does this mean that disqualifications are not excluded in the future?

      Frederick Wasser: Yes, definitely. We always have to find a balance between the disqualification associated with taking some risk and the disqualification associated with attempting to deliberately deceive. The essence of the Formula 1 game is that we must always and everywhere, in all aspects, reach the limit of what is acceptable.

      Down to the last gram in terms of weight, down to the last tenth of a millimeter in terms of wear of the control bar on the bottom of the car, down to the last millimeter of deformation of the aerodynamic elements. Of course, as the pressure increases and the rivalry becomes more intense, so does the need to get closer to the limit of what is possible, which means taking more risks.

      Question: You've been involved in sports management for thirty years now: would you change any of the drivers after just two starts?Frederick Wasser: These are all typical Red Bull stories. You can't even imagine how difficult it is to evaluate the processes taking place in a team. We don't know what's going on there that made them make this decision. There may be billions of reasons for this, known only to the team and the individual rider. And sometimes the rider doesn't know them either.

      Therefore, I would prefer to refrain from commenting. It probably seems to us that making such decisions after just two races is too cruel. But at the same time, we don't even have 10% of the information, so it's better not to try to judge anyone. I hate it when people try to judge us, so I'm not going to judge others.

      Q: Last year, your team won the Australian Grand Prix, and this was the third race of the season. Will Ferrari be able to repeat this in Japan, where the third stage of the season will take place?Frederick Wasser: We've already won the second race of the season! (laughs)