Williams Team Principal James Vowels has admitted that the current scrutiny on his Ferrari Formula 1 counterpart Fred Vasseur has the ability to “destroy individuals.”
The Frenchman is the subject of speculation regarding his future with the team, which has so far failed to score a single Grand Prix victory this season.
Vasseur made his feelings clear on the subject prior to the Canadian Grand Prix last weekend, with a furious takedown of the Italian press, and saying that the speculation was “hurting” the team.
Vowles was quick to defend Vasseur to media including Motorsport Week and validated his thoughts on the situation.
“I think the thing I’d put here, of all – I’ve known Fred for probably 20 years or so,” he said. “Fred is an incredibly good leader. And what you see him doing here in front of you today is he’s shouldering all of this because that’s what we do, and that’s our job to do it.
“And his point is actually valid. For me personally, it’s never caused me grief or upset. But what I’ve seen it do is destroy individuals as a result of one line that’s written by someone who may or may not know any details behind it.
Vowles added that “it shows you what the power of words are – in a positive and negative sense. But what I would say is I have all the respect in the world for Fréd and what he is doing in Ferrari, because they are competitive and they are moving forward. Simple as that.”
Rumours circulate when there isn’t ‘anything else to write about’
Haas boss Ayao Komatsu corroborated Vowles’ viewpoint on the situation, hinting that it shows the media are struggling to find stories of value.
“Yeah. I guess it’s part of F1,” he said. “These rumours – people like to talk about those things when they haven’t got anything else to write about.
“So yeah, it does affect the team to a certain extent. But I think when the team leader is there – I’ve been with two different teams previously that had really good leaders—and when communication internally is clear, then we have trust in them.
“So yes, outside people can say whatever they want. I think true teams—they will be fine.”
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