Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur says the team and drivers are always pushing for improvement, and admits he has “no clue” how the team will get on compared to the rest of the grid in the upcoming 2026 F1 season.
Ferrari finished the 2025 F1 season fourth in the Constructors’ Championship, after struggling with the performance of the SF-25 all season. After the Abu Dhabi GP, Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc was happy to leave the season behind and shift focus to the new season, which will provide a clean slate for teams, given the regulation changes for the 2026 F1 season.
While the 2026 season offers opportunities for teams to improve, Leclerc stressed the importance of Ferrari starting the new regulation cycle strong, as it would set the tone for the next four years.
Confronted with Leclerc’s ‘now or never’ statement about the 2026 F1 season, Ferrari’s ongoing title drought, and the team’s collective desire to turn things around, Vasseur stated in his print media session in Abu Dhabi that the desire to improve is always there. The Ferrari team principal notes that every team and driver will always push to improve every aspect of their performance, regardless of the result.
Teams and drivers always push for improvement, irrespective of results
“Honestly, I think Charles [Leclerc], if you have a look at last year when you asked him after the session: ‘Are you happy with the session when it’s P2, or are you happy when it’s P6?’ it’s not the same Charles [Leclerc] for sure. But if you ask him the Thursday after, ‘What do you want to do with the team?’ I think the approach is always the same. It’s always constructive to try to do better.
“Even if I’m P1, I have exactly the same approach with the team on the Monday morning when we are doing the debrief to know and to understand where we can do better, and it doesn’t matter if you are P1 or P10.
“I think the debrief today at Alpine, at Williams, at Red Bull, or with us, it’s the same. We are just trying to do a better job on every single pillar of the performance on the engine, on the gearbox, on the aero, on the set-up, on the simulator.
“This is the DNA of what we are doing but all of us it’s not that just one team is waking up in the morning, ah we are not doing a good job we have to push trust me that I think Max [Verstappen] is pushing the team at the limit, Lando [Norris] is pushing the team at the limit and honestly as an F1 team it’s also what we are expecting it’s part of their job.
“I started like this, but if Charles [Leclerc] and Lewis [Hamilton], if they were very happy with the car and with everything, I would be desperate, but this is more positive than something else.”
Vasseur has “no clue” how Ferrari will fare in the 2026 F1 season compared to other teams
After a difficult start to the season and little hope of catching up to the front-runners, Ferrari, led by Vasseur, decided to shift focus to the 2026 F1 season early on. Whether this will give the Scuderia an advantage at the start of the season remains to be seen.
Vasseur says he has “no clue” how Ferrari will fare. The team is pushing “at the limit” and believes more time is a positive, but Vasseur acknowledges that there is always a chance someone else will do a better job. The Frenchman reckons it is best to focus on themselves and wait until testing in Bahrain or the first round in Australia before considering the pecking order.
“This, I have no clue. You know perfectly that all sport is a comparison. I can do a good job, but if someone did a better job, I look stupid. That means that we are focused on our project, we are developing more project, we are pushing at the limit, and we are trying to do the best, and the more time you are spending on a project, the better you will be.
“But I don’t know if McLaren, Red Bull, or Alpine is in front of us. Nobody knows. I think the most important is not to spend time to try to understand if the others are in front or behind. This we will know in Barcelona, I’m not sure, but let’s say Australia, probably.”
Capability for quick development will be a key factor for F1 teams in 2026
Ferrari, just like every other team, will get a better understanding of the pecking order once the 2026 F1 season starts in Australia. While Leclerc stressed the importance of starting the season strong, Vasseur believes that even if the result in Australia isn’t ideal, it doesn’t mean all is lost, as the season is long and can turn around depending on the team’s ability to adapt and develop as it progresses.
“Another point is that next year it won’t be about the first picture of the season, it won’t be all about the classification of Australia. It will be a lot about development and capacity for quick development, and that season won’t be over in Australia for sure, no matter if we are P1 or P10. But it will be a long way until the end, it will be a long way for everyone.”
