Ferrari boss Frederic Vasseur expressed optimism that the team`s car displayed greater potential during Spanish Grand Prix practice sessions than indicated by some of Lewis Hamilton`s `extreme` radio remarks made from the cockpit.
After placing both cars in the top four during the initial practice session in Barcelona on Friday, Ferrari fell to half a second behind the leading McLaren`s pace in the second session, with Charles Leclerc finishing fifth and Lewis Hamilton 11th.
Hamilton, who was third fastest in P1, later admitted his day was “not fun” after earlier describing his car over the radio during Practice Two as “not driveable”.
Reflecting on Ferrari`s performance on Friday, which marked the first day the entire field ran under new regulations aimed at restricting front-wing flexing, team principal Vasseur commented: “I think we had very good pace this morning, but we struggled a bit more in the afternoon.”
“We had a decent lap with Charles before his mistake at Turn Seven; it was an improvement on P1. But the goal is to complete a full lap, not just good corners.”
“Then we struggled somewhat more at the start of each long run. I believe this was true for us and also for several other cars. The track was very dirty with a lot of marbles.”
“Overall, it was a long day, and we gathered good information. It was our first time running the new front wing, and we`ll have significant work to do tonight.”
Regarding Lewis Hamilton specifically, Vasseur was asked about the seven-time champion`s state after a varied recent period, including a strong recovery drive at Imola followed by a challenging Monaco weekend.
Vasseur responded, “His comments on the radio today were somewhat extreme, but he also put in a strong last stint on the soft tyres, matching the lap times of the top two.”
“This suggests that perhaps the car wasn`t as dreadful as he claimed on the radio.”
“But again, for me, the comments they make in the car aren`t a major issue, as long as they return, and we have a constructive debrief.”
However, Vasseur did admit that improvements were needed regarding the car`s handling.
When Nico Rosberg commented that the car appeared difficult to drive based on his trackside observation of the second session, Vasseur replied, “It`s no secret that we are struggling somewhat with the car`s balance.”
“We need to improve on this, but as long as we can correct it and have a good race, then that`s fine. This has been the case for the past couple of weekends.”
“We need to improve on single laps, but I think it`s more about tyre management and getting the tyres into the correct operating window at the start of the lap, rather than anything else. The balance isn`t perfect, that`s true. But it`s true for us, and I think it`s true for others as well.”
Hamilton Hopeful Fixing `Problem` Helps Pace | Leclerc: More Positive Than Expected
Speaking after finishing 11th, Hamilton described his day as “Not fun.”
“It`s a beautiful place, the weather has been amazing, but no, not a good day.”
Asked about using his experience to overcome issues and motivate the team, Hamilton stated, “I wouldn`t say I`m motivating the team right now. You just keep your head down, keep working. You don`t give up.”
“You keep going, keep pushing, keep trying to focus on solving the issues, which we`ll attempt to do.”
“You arrive on a Friday hoping for a good day, and then it doesn`t go well. But then you have a weekend like Monaco where, suddenly, the car feels great. Honestly, I thought the car would be good today.”
“P1 wasn`t too bad, but P2 was significantly worse. This is naturally frustrating, but we had a problem causing a loss of downforce, so hopefully fixing that will put us in a better position tomorrow.”
In contrast to Hamilton and similar to Vasseur, teammate Charles Leclerc was more optimistic about the car`s potential at the high-speed Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya.
“It`s very, very warm, which makes it a bit trickier on track, and the grip isn`t as good as we`d like, but it hasn`t been too bad,” said Leclerc.
“Honestly, it`s been a bit more positive than we expected coming here, so that`s good. There`s more performance in the car that I hope we`ll unlock heading into qualifying.”
“There`s still quite a bit of work to be done, but I don`t think we`re too far off.”
Pacesetter Piastri`s Warning; Verstappen `Bit Happier` in Red Bull
After weeks of speculation about the effect of F1`s new front-wing flexibility rules introduced this weekend, Friday practice in Barcelona saw Oscar Piastri top the second session, but the overall picture remained close.
Piastri`s single-lap advantage in P2 on the soft tyres was a relatively comfortable three-tenths of a second over George Russell in the Mercedes, who finished second fastest.
This prompted Russell to sarcastically comment on the rule change`s impact: “It clearly slowed McLaren down a lot, so good news.”
McLaren has consistently maintained that the clarification would not significantly affect their car`s performance.
Despite McLaren`s strong showing on Friday, Piastri acknowledged threats from competitors, particularly noting that the circuit was expected to suit Max Verstappen`s Red Bull.
“It`s been a bit of an up and down day,” said Piastri, who was half a second behind teammate Lando Norris in opening practice. “Ending on an up, which is good, but our competitors look quick.”
“Verstappen has been quick all day, Ferrari have been there, Mercedes showed up at the end, so I think it`s going to be a tight battle.”
“Definitely some things to still try and work on.”
Piastri added, “We definitely expected Red Bull to be quick, which isn`t surprising. We`re just trying to make the car faster. We tried a few things today; some worked, some didn`t, so we`re learning.”
Max Verstappen, the reigning three-time champion, finished third, clocking the exact same time as Norris.
Although he wasn`t entirely satisfied with his car after the first day, Verstappen seemed more positive about Red Bull`s start to the weekend than usual.
“It was an okay Friday,” said Verstappen, who has won F1`s last three races held in Spain.
“We`ve had worse Fridays. I felt a bit happier with the car. We are still not where we want to be, but it was definitely a bit more positive.”
“Of course, every track is a bit different, but I still want a better feeling from the car. But I`ve also had Fridays where we were completely out of it, so it`s a bit more in the middle.”
