The tone rises at the Scuderia Ferrari. After a nightmarish Miami Grand Prix, marked by a double top 8 finish unworthy of the Scuderia's ambitions and a tense radio clash between Lewis Hamilton and his engineer, Frédéric Vasseur decided to raise his voice. The Scuderia boss is now pinning all his hopes on the Barcelona Grand Prix on the weekend of June 1, referring to a "reset for everyone". A strong message, almost an ultimatum, addressed to a team losing its bearings.
Miami, the breaking point?
Everything seemed to be in place for a rebound in Miami, with a track favorable to the Ferraris... but in the end, only 7th and 8th place. Worse still, the red single-seaters found themselves behind a Williams, and far, far behind a McLaren that flew through the race. Result: 152 points behind in the constructors' championship after just six races. An abyss.
On the track, the duel between Hamilton and Leclerc left its mark. While the two drivers quickly exchanged positions, it was the tone and content of the radio messages that highlighted the unease. Hamilton, stuck behind his team-mate, quipped: "Have a cup of tea while you decide", then, more acidly: "Do you want me to let Sainz through too?".
Hamilton gives Vasseur a private dressing-down
The incident didn't stay confined to the radio. At the end of the race, Hamilton had a heated exchange with Fred Vasseur. "He came into my room, I put my hand on his shoulder and said, 'Hey, relax. Don't be so touchy", the Brit told reporters. No apology, but an assertive message: "I'm a fighter, I want to win. If I feel it's dragging on, I'll say so."
The tone remained diplomatic on the surface, but the damage has been done: in Maranello, people are beginning to wonder whether the chemistry between the team and its "dream team" of drivers is really working. Vasseur downplayed the situation: "I understand his frustration. But the orders were justified. The Ferrari comes first."
Is the car up to the job?
Perhaps that's the worst of it: neither Leclerc nor Hamilton really believe in the SF-25's potential. The updates introduced at previous Grand Prix races did nothing to help. Worse still, the team was unable to overtake a Williams in the race. It's a failure that even Vasseur's explanations of "qualifying mistakes" can no longer mask.
Leclerc, usually measured, seemed resigned. Hamilton, on the other hand, is starting to raise his voice. And the idea of a gradual falling out of love between drivers and technical staff is becoming a paddock topic.
Barcelona or the end of a cycle?
It's against this backdrop of high tension that Vasseur now looks to the Spanish Grand Prix as a kind of last hope. Major changes are planned for Imola, but it's in Barcelona that the cards could be reshuffled: "The new flexibility rules will mean a change of front wings, so it could be a reset for everyone," he told the Italian press. In other words, if nothing changes in Barcelona, then everything could change in Maranello.
Behind the hushed speeches, one message is clear: the real "reset" may not just concern the car's parts. It could also affect the team's organizational chart. An unspoken ultimatum, but now clear.
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