Ferrari: Hamilton out, Leclerc P4. Vasseur admits: “We wanted a red flag”

No Ferrari drivers on the podium at the Spanish Grand Prix: Lewis Hamilton had to pull his Ferrari over due to failing brakes, whilst Charles Leclerc was not called into the pits during a VSC period. The Italians thought – there’s bound to be another Safety Car period, then we can change tyres with less time lost.

However, that further SC phase never materialised; eventually, the tyres on the Monegasque’s car gave out, so a pit stop was necessary, causing him to drop back to fourth place.

Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur on the events at the Spanish Grand Prix: “I think we made the most of our opportunities in the race. Unfortunately, we had a technical problem with Lewis’s car – the brake pedal travel kept getting longer and longer – so on a track like this, it makes no sense to carry on. But Charles drove a very good, long first stint, covering 49 laps.”

“Of course, we were expecting a red flag to turn Leclerc’s lead into a win. With a safety car, we’d probably have finished second or third. But none of that happened. All in all, I believe we got the most out of the Grand Prix.”

“I think we had the right strategy, and I’m also satisfied with how it was executed. The race didn’t go our way.”

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“We then put Charles on soft tyres towards the end, but the pace was disappointing. We think we know the reason for that, but I don’t want to talk about it.”

“All in all, I see our situation here as a bit like at Zandvoort: there too we had solid race pace, but when you have to start from fourth and fifth on the grid, it’s simply difficult. Especially on a circuit like this one, where overtaking is almost impossible.”