Out with the old, in with the new: a look at Ferrari's F1 prospects for 2023

Monday, January 9, will be Frédéric Vasseur’s first official day as team principal of the Ferrari F1 team. A change of this type will have repercussions on every area of the Maranello team which is called to a decisive response against a very strong opponent as Red Bull proved to be last year. The 2022 Formula One season didn’t end badly, considering the second place in both championships, and the fact that the single-seater from Maranello was the fastest on track for the first part of the season is proof of this.

Fred Vasseur’s arrival sets a very high bar: winning the world championship or “die tryin'”, as American rappers would say. Ferrari is called upon to change every aspect while maintaining the progress made. Actions that are needed to end the 15-year wait for a Formula 1 title. Because that is the goal or at least to completely reduce the gap from an unstoppable Red Bull while also remaining ahead of a Mercedes which proved it has the ability to return at the top. But how will the drivers react to the new boss?

New team principal, new rules. This is usually the motto that accompanies change because, if it is true that a team which wins is not changed, a team that wants to triumph, on the contrary, must make changes to its action plan if it wants to improve.

There has been a lot of talk about the method adopted by Ferrari for a potentially thorny but vital issue such as driver management. However, with the arrival of Frederic Vasseur, it will be necessary to evaluate whether the new team principal will lean towards maintaining the freedom for Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz to battle on track or whether he will choose to outline a first driver on whom to focus all his strength as Red Bull does with Max Verstappen.

In the event that Frederic Vasseur adopts the latter method, needless to say who would be the chosen one. The Frenchman already has an excellent relationship with Charles Leclerc. In fact, the Monegasque was right under his guidance both when he won the world championship in GP3 – denomination currently replaced with Formula 3 – in 2016, as well as in his debut season in Formula 1 with Sauber back in 2018.

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Carlos Sainz, on the contrary, is a “Mattia Binotto man”: the Italian, in fact, played all his cards so that the Spaniard arrived to Scuderia Ferrari from McLaren two years ago: for this reason it was easy for the Spanish driver to maintain equal rights and opportunities with his Maranello teammate, who is seen by many as Ferrari’s best chance to winning the title.

This freedom has allowed Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz to develop a solid relationship, in which the utmost respect between the two has prevented any for of disagreement on or off the track. In this view, the parity and the way Mattia Binotto managed his drivers has helped the team. In 2021, let’s remember, it was Carlos Sainz who finished in front; while in 2022 the situation was reversed. Charles Leclerc, in fact, holds better results overall than his Maranello teammate: 467 points, 3 wins and 11 poles against Carlos’ 410 points, 1 win and 2 pole positions.

A Red Bull-stylre management in favor of Charles Leclerc would undermine this parity but would allow the Italian team not to “waste” energy on a double front. Speaking with Autosprint, in this regard, Carlos Sainz said he was confident in Fred Vasseur’s arrival at the team, stating that the ex Sauber’s confidence in Charles Leclerc is a clear advantage for Ferrari. This, according to the Spaniard, would speed up the French manager’s process of adapting to the new environment, facilitating work and improving performance in the next Formula 1 season.

Cesare Fiorio, someone who knows how things go at Ferrari very well, said he was sure that there will be no hierarchy problems next season, trusting that the two drivers will maintain the same management open to confrontation as they are used to, at least until the first half of 2023. The former Ferrari executive, in fact, hypothesized that the Prancing Horse could only move to a fixed hierarchy in the middle of the championship, that is, once a driver has gained a significant advantage in the standings.

The possibility of leaving Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc free to compete until mid-season, or until we “start to get serious”, looks like a highly probable theory. If Frederic Vasseur chooses this alternative he could emphasize the team’s chances of winning. In fact, a “one-driver focus” method like the Red Bull one would be dizzying for the two drivers, as well as highly frustrating, as they are not used to having to sacrifice themselves right from the start.

However, even leaving the reins completely free to the two drivers of the Prancing Horse could have the downside of wasting energy. The solution proposed by Cesare Fiorio, on the other hand, would make it possible to keep the fittest going without frustrating anyone or wasting important resources, working in an orderly and efficient manner.

Furthermore, there would not even be driver management problems between Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz, because, as the Italian underlines, “if Carlos Sainz were ahead and could aspire to become world champion, Charles Leclerc would have to make himself available. They are professionals and know what the team needs.” Which would lead Maranello to adopt the “Mercedes method”.

Meanwhile, the days go by slowly closing this chasm called “winter break”. Engines roar impatiently on the dynamic dynos as a new Formula 1 season dawns and Fred Vasseur prepares to become Ferrari team principal, tackling a new challenge head on.