Vasseur: The political map was played very well.

      Ferrari cars likely still allow the team's drivers to handle starts better than their competitors, however, Frederic Vasseur is concerned that the amendments made to the regulations may deprive Scuderia of this advantage.

      It is largely related to the design features of the power unit, and specifically, to the conscious choice of Ferrari's engineers in favor of a smaller turbocharger. This engineering solution has its downsides, but in Maranello, they preferred to sacrifice peak power for quicker accelerations.

      "The compromise was whether we wanted to gain one-tenth of a second per lap or were willing to lose five positions at the start?" Vasseur said in an interview with The Race. "If you ask the engineers, they will say: 'OK, let's start well instead.'

      Imagine if there were no blue signals (a new light signal that gives drivers time to spin up the engine turbos to the required RPM before the start), some cars would still be sitting on the starting grid in China (laughs).

      Safety comes first, and introducing additional measures in this area is the FIA's prerogative. I have to respect that, but ultimately it is not entirely fair to us. A year ago, I approached the FIA, and we discussed this at the level of the Sporting Advisory Committee (SAC) as well as at the Power Unit Advisory Committee (PUAC).

      I appreciated the response received from the federation, which essentially stated that the car must be developed in accordance with the current regulations, rather than adjusting the regulations to fit your car. I think this is a very correct approach.

      And then it turned out that almost half of the starting grid, about forty percent, complained that the starts are very dangerous and all that. The political card was played very well, but it was not entirely fair."

      George Russell, director of the GPDA association, even publicly stated at the Chinese Grand Prix that Ferrari is acting selfishly by blocking changes to the start procedure.

      "I disagree that the decision was made for safety reasons," Vasseur continued. "But that's their business. When everyone is against it, they can make such decisions. But it was excessively harsh towards us. I understand what measures are being taken for safety, but an alternative option would have been to suggest that the others start from the pit lane if they believe the starts are unsafe.

      But this also speaks to the choice we made. We developed the engine based on certain criteria, and they, you could say, changed the rules at the last minute."