Fred Vasseur, Ferrari Formula 1 boss, believes Charles Leclerc is still motivated despite a struggling start for the Monegasque.
In 2022, Leclerc had a stunning start with two victories at the start of the season. He had amassed a comfortable lead of 71 points in the world championship standing.
Unfortunately, with three races in the season he managed to score only six points in Saudia Arabian Grand Prix. Currently, he lies at 10th place because of an engine issue in Bahrain and accident with Lance Stroll in Australia.
Vassuer assured that he understands his frustration but insisted that Leclerc is still behind the team.
“I have absolutely no doubt about the motivation of Charles,” he said.
“For sure the start of the season is not ideal at all. We had the DNF in Bahrain and then the penalty in Jeddah, and the DNF in Melbourne.
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“It was not the at all the plan. But the motivation is still there. You know that I have a good relationship with Charles. And this won’t affect the mood.
“But when you are jumping on Charles or Carlos or any other drivers in the TV pen 30 seconds after the race, for sure they can’t be happy.
“And I would be very frustrated if they were relaxed and happy with the situation. The most important for me to keep everybody motivated, pushing in the same direction and they are supporting the team.
“Carlos was there [last] week in the simulator and Charles will be there [this] week. The motivation is not an issue at all. For sure the results are not as expected. But we all know that.”
Vassuer thinks Frustration is positive
In Australia, Leclerc qualified to seventh on the grid blaming the lack of communication on team. He encountered struggling Sainz in Q3 which cost him time. He showed his concerns after the qualifying in the camp.
Vasseur addressed the concerns of both drivers and believes showing frustration was a positive.
“As you can imagine, I spoke a lot with them,” said the Frenchman. “As I said when you’re jumping on the drivers in the TV pen and they had a poor session or poor quali or poor race, they are always frustrated.
“And this frustration is positive for me, because I would be disappointed if it was not the case.”
