Ferrari seem to have emerged as the closest challengers to Red Bull after the first four races of the 2024 season. After breaking the Austrian team’s record-breaking streak in 2023 at the Singapore GP, Ferrari again did the same this year by winning the Australian GP. Although Max Verstappen did register a DNF in Melbourne, Carlos Sainz yet had enough pace to challenge the Dutchman for the win on merit. Since the Prancing Horse seem to have closed down the gap to Red Bull, Fred Vasseur now hopes that the team can take the next step forward when Lewis Hamilton joins them in 2025.
“The arrival of Lewis Hamilton? It is important for the team. Beyond the speed, it brings serenity to the team, experience, a track record. An experience of victory which we also needs at Ferrari to move forward,” explained Vasseur in an interview with Radio France.
Ferrari indeed do seem to have made a huge step forward from the 2023 season to this year as either Carlos Sainz or Charles Leclerc has managed to register a podium in every race so far. Now, that Ferrari seem to have established themselves as arguably the second-fastest team on the current grid, Vassuer hopes to take the team one step further.
The Frenchman then added how he expects Hamilton and Charles Leclerc will get along well and maintain harmony within the team. Moreover, he believes that Hamilton’s arrival will also bring a much-needed winning mentality to the team. These important qualities will help Ferrari push forward and take the fight to Red Bull in 2025.
Ferrari chief issues a warning
After the first four races of the 2024 season, Ferrari have made it clear that they have no intention of letting Red Bull run away with the Constructors’ title as the Milton Keynes-based outfit did in the past two campaigns. The Prancing Horse are just 21 points behind Red Bull, who cannot afford to make any mistakes if they are to retain the championship.
Although Ferrari have improved drastically since the start of the 2023 season, chief executive Benedetto Vigna has yet issued a note of caution for his side. As quoted by the Mirror, Vigna said, “The world of competition is like a person’s life accelerated to the maximum. Things can change quickly, going between good and bad. Stasis does not exist, everything flows quickly.”
Hence, even if the Italian outfit is on an upward trajectory at the moment, it does not take much to fall down the pecking order. As a result, Ferrari need to ensure that they do not let their guard down and continue to improve to have the best chance of fighting for the championships with Lewis Hamilton in 2025 even if they fail to do this year.
