Jacques Villeneuve, the 1997 Formula 1 world champion, believes the pressure and criticism faced by Fred Vasseur as Ferrari team principal is simply part of the job. According to him, it's a risk anyone leading a team as big as Ferrari must accept.
Speculation about Vasseur's future at Ferrari has intensified, especially after rumors linked former Red Bull boss Christian Horner to a management role at the Italian outfit. Ferrari tried to quell the situation by publicly backing Vasseur in a press call ahead of the Bahrain Grand Prix, and their drivers, Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc, have also defended him.
Speaking on Sky Sports F1 during Friday practice in Sepang, Villeneuve shared his view. "The team principal is never the scapegoat, he's the top of the organisation. When things go well, he looks great, when things don't go well, he's the one who takes the beating," he said. "It's normal and anyone who goes to Ferrari, not only a team principal, knows that that's the price to pay. It comes with a heavy baggage of, 'You're fantastic when you perform, but two or three bad races, and the whole world is against you,' at least in the media. It's been like that forever. It's been like that for other team principals, drivers, engineers, everyone. That's just the price to pay for being in the greatest team of all time."
When asked if he thinks Vasseur deserves more time, Villeneuve replied, "I don't know. Did the other ones deserve more time? He's had more time than a lot of other ones already. I think the big difference now is he's protected by the drivers as well, which is a good thing."
Villeneuve also pointed out a big problem he reckons is hampering Ferrari in its so far failed attempt to end a near-two-decade wait to win F1 world titles. "If you look at other teams like Mercedes and Toto Wolff, he makes all the decisions. Nobody's above him. And he's also an owner of the team like teams used to be in the past," the Canadian explained. "You don't have that at Ferrari. Vasseur doesn't have full control about what's going on or decision-making."
Villeneuve stressed that leadership by committee can never work in F1. "Committee doesn't work. It's too slow," he added. "In F1, you need to be reactive, you have to be quick." This critique highlights the structural challenges Ferrari faces, where decisions often involve multiple parties, unlike teams like Mercedes that give full authority to the team principal.
With pressure mounting, Vasseur's future at Ferrari remains uncertain. However, support from drivers and management indicates he still has the trust to lead the team to success. Only time will tell if he can turn Ferrari's fortunes around or if the criticism will lead to major changes.
Baca Juga
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