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How Ferrari will work to close down Mercedes in April F1 break
Ferrari is lacking in a straight line compared to Mercedes and McLaren, says Formula 1 team principal Fred Vasseur.
Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur has identified a key area of weakness that the Scuderia must improve over the unscheduled spring break to close the gap to pace-setters Mercedes.
After three rounds of the 2026 Formula 1 season, Ferrari sits second in the constructors’ championship, 45 points behind Mercedes but 44 clear of McLaren.
In each grand prix so far, Ferrari has featured on the third step of the podium, twice backing up this pace with the second driver in fourth place.
But after McLaren showed improved pace in Japan to end Mercedes’ early streak of one-two dominance, Vasseur is aware that his team must use the five weeks without racing to shrink the gap.
“For sure, we have a lot of work like everybody in the paddock,” he said. “It is the beginning of the homologation of the car. I think that we have done some things to improve.
“Now, we have good data from the first three races to understand the competitiveness of the car, where we are okayish and where we are not. Performance is coming from everywhere, but we have to take a step in every single area of the performance.
“I am sure that it is true for us, but it will also be true for everybody on the grid. It is more a matter of doing a better job than the others than to do a step.”
Both Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc have identified this term that the Ferrari has good cornering performance, but lacks pace on the straights. In part, this could be down to the team running a smaller turbo than rivals, which assists in getting impressive launches, but gives less top end performance.
This issue was highlighted in Japan, when Hamilton was unable to make progress after enjoying a cheap pit stop under the safety car.
“What is clear this season is that as soon as you are not in the overtake mode, you are losing a little bit of pace and you are in this situation to have a train on the track,” said Vasseur.
“When he lost the one-second gap on the car ahead, it was a bit more difficult.
“We know that we have a deficit of performance on a straight line, and we have to work on it, but it is what it is.”
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Ferrari is lacking in a straight line compared to Mercedes and McLaren, says Formula 1 team principal Fred Vasseur.
Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur has identified a key area of weakness that the Scuderia must improve over the unscheduled spring break to close the gap to pace-setters Mercedes.
After three rounds of the 2026 Formula 1 season, Ferrari sits second in the constructors’ championship, 45 points behind Mercedes but 44 clear of McLaren.
In each grand prix so far, Ferrari has featured on the third step of the podium, twice backing up this pace with the second driver in fourth place.
But after McLaren showed improved pace in Japan to end Mercedes’ early streak of one-two dominance, Vasseur is aware that his team must use the five weeks without racing to shrink the gap.
“For sure, we have a lot of work like everybody in the paddock,” he said. “It is the beginning of the homologation of the car. I think that we have done some things to improve.
“Now, we have good data from the first three races to understand the competitiveness of the car, where we are okayish and where we are not. Performance is coming from everywhere, but we have to take a step in every single area of the performance.
“I am sure that it is true for us, but it will also be true for everybody on the grid. It is more a matter of doing a better job than the others than to do a step.”
Both Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc have identified this term that the Ferrari has good cornering performance, but lacks pace on the straights. In part, this could be down to the team running a smaller turbo than rivals, which assists in getting impressive launches, but gives less top end performance.
This issue was highlighted in Japan, when Hamilton was unable to make progress after enjoying a cheap pit stop under the safety car.
“What is clear this season is that as soon as you are not in the overtake mode, you are losing a little bit of pace and you are in this situation to have a train on the track,” said Vasseur.
“When he lost the one-second gap on the car ahead, it was a bit more difficult.
“We know that we have a deficit of performance on a straight line, and we have to work on it, but it is what it is.”
Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur has identified a key area of weakness that the Scuderia must improve over the unscheduled spring break to close the gap to pace-setters Mercedes.
After three rounds of the 2026 Formula 1 season, Ferrari sits second in the constructors’ championship, 45 points behind Mercedes but 44 clear of McLaren.
In each grand prix so far, Ferrari has featured on the third step of the podium, twice backing up this pace with the second driver in fourth place.
But after McLaren showed improved pace in Japan to end Mercedes’ early streak of one-two dominance, Vasseur is aware that his team must use the five weeks without racing to shrink the gap.
“For sure, we have a lot of work like everybody in the paddock,” he said. “It is the beginning of the homologation of the car. I think that we have done some things to improve.
“Now, we have good data from the first three races to understand the competitiveness of the car, where we are okayish and where we are not. Performance is coming from everywhere, but we have to take a step in every single area of the performance.
“I am sure that it is true for us, but it will also be true for everybody on the grid. It is more a matter of doing a better job than the others than to do a step.”
Both Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc have identified this term that the Ferrari has good cornering performance, but lacks pace on the straights. In part, this could be down to the team running a smaller turbo than rivals, which assists in getting impressive launches, but gives less top end performance.
This issue was highlighted in Japan, when Hamilton was unable to make progress after enjoying a cheap pit stop under the safety car.
“What is clear this season is that as soon as you are not in the overtake mode, you are losing a little bit of pace and you are in this situation to have a train on the track,” said Vasseur.
“When he lost the one-second gap on the car ahead, it was a bit more difficult.
“We know that we have a deficit of performance on a straight line, and we have to work on it, but it is what it is.”
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