Vasseur praises Leclerc for "wonderful job" while he also reveals when Ferrari might introduce upgrades
After Ferrari grabbed their first podium finish in 2025, team boss Fred Vasseur has labelled Charles Leclerc's performance as "a wonderful job" while he also hinted at when the Scuderia might bring their next set of upgrades.
Ferrari appeared to struggle for pace across the practice sessions, and so significant were their struggles that Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc were forced to bolt on a second set of fresh softs in Q1 to progress into the middle segment of qualifying.
However, the SF25 came in the race alive. Leclerc started on the medium and managed to run a very long opening stint, managing his tyres better than any other drivers.
The Monegasque then switched to the hard for his final stint, and although he dropped down the order, he enjoyed a big tyre offset and was able to get past Russell. In the closing stages, Leclerc was forced to hold off a late charge from Norris, but he managed to bag his first podium of the season.
His team-mate Hamilton also started on the mediums, and he also tried to extend his first stint. He was unfortunate tough as he lost crucial time when Oscar Piastri and Max Verstappen overtook him on their fresh tyres.
He displayed a great pace on his second stint, and closed in on his Mercedes replacement Andrea Kimi Antonelli, but he was unable to move any further forward than P7.
After the race, Ferrari team boss Fred Vasseur commented on his team’s performance on the Jeddah street circuit. “We need to start at the front, because our race pace is always good. At the start, Charles was a bit conservative to manage things, and that allowed us to have speed in the final phase. We definitely need to be more consistent over the course of the weekend.
“We must keep working and developing to improve as soon as possible. We certainly have weak points, especially in qualifying, because on Sundays we’re competitive. It’s not about individuals, but the entire team—we’re all in the same boat.
“When you’re three tenths behind, there’s no magic wand to fix everything. In this sport, every detail makes the difference, and we need to use the same approach as last year. Only in that way can we catch up with McLaren. If we look at the points, the gap with Mercedes and Red Bull comes down to what happened in China. We shouldn’t think about the championship but take it race by race.
Pushed on to comment on seven-time F1 champion Lewis Hamilton's race in Jeddah, Vasseur said that the Maranello-based squad needs to make sure that the Briton can deliver a more consistent performance.
“As for Lewis, he struggled mainly with dirty air. He’s experiencing too many ups and downs, as we are as a team. We need to be more consistent and do a better job in FP3 to prepare properly for qualifying.
"In Miami, bringing updates will be difficult because of the Sprint. Something could arrive in Imola," concluded Vasseur.
