Ferrari boss Fred Vasseur admitted Charles Leclerc’s second place in Formula 1‘s Monaco Grand Prix doesn’t detract from how the team has “underperformed” in 2025.
Home hero Leclerc took his second podium finish of the season, but ultimately could not overhaul the McLaren of Lando Norris, who took victory at the famed Principality.
It was a surprising upturn in form for the Scuderia, which has so far struggled on tracks with low-speed corners, due to the SF-25’s aerodynamic and rear suspension flaws.
Whilst the team could be pleased with a fair chunk of points via Leclerc’s podium and Lewis Hamilton’s fifth place, Vasseur says it will not mask its tricky start to the campaign.
“My expectation and the summary of the season didn’t change with this weekend,” he told media including Motorsport Week. “I think we didn’t do a mega strong first part of the season.
“I don’t know how many races we did, eight now, it’s the first serve let’s say, that we underperformed compared to expectation and this is mega clear and we have to be honest with ourselves.
“Even if we had a good weekend this season, a good race this weekend, it’s not changing completely the picture. Now I feel also that we have a positive trend in the last two or three races, with the race in Imola, the race pace in Jeddah, the complete weekend in Monaco, and if we can start the second part of the season in this place, it’s good.”
How Ferrari defied ‘not mega high’ Monaco expectations
Ferrari might have been left disappointed not to leave Leclerc’s homeland with a second successive victory in Monaco, having topped all three practice sessions.
But the team should feel consolation in scoring a double-points finish, considering Vasseur’s own pre-race assessment that prospects did not look wholly positive.
“It’s true that after Imola the level of expectation was not mega high because we were struggling before Imola, Miami probably,” he explained.
“Miami, Imola we were struggling a lot in the low-speed corner that we were struggling in quali and the low speed corner in quali it’s key in Monaco. That means that the level of expectation was not mega high coming to Monte Carlo.
“But it’s true also that after FP1, FP2, FP3, Q1 that the level of expectation was a bit different and we were a bit frustrated yesterday evening with P2. I think today honestly we did the job.
“It was difficult to expect much more starting from P2 except if something happened in front, but we can’t ask much more to Charles and to the team today.”
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