At the end of the Monaco Grand Prix in the Ferrari garage there were certainly feelings of joy, liberation and enthusiasm. Charles Leclerc took a hugely significant victory, both for the Championship and on a personal level.
This is already the second victory of the season for SF-24 after the one in Australia, complete with a double and triumph for Carlos Sainz. Another positive result for Frederic Vasseur‘s team. There was a taboo to dispel and a complicated match to bring home, with all the underdogs increasing the pressure.
VASSEUR: “I KNOW HOW MUCH CHARLES WANTED IT. WE ARE NOT WORLD CHAMPIONS, BUT THE TEAM HAS BEEN WORKING WELL FOR MORE THAN A YEAR.”
Interviewed in the pit lane by Sky Sports F1 Italia, Fred Vasseur commented on the result of his team and its significance for the home hero:
“Fortunately for me, I had the opportunity to experience some beautiful moments, such as the pole in Monza with Ferrari, but this is definitely one of those.
“I’ve known Charles for a long time, I know how much he wanted her and how much he chased him. It’s a joy for him and for the whole team,” he declared with his men in the garage, busy celebrating post-race.
The Team Principal revealed how the team’s confidence in Monaco since arriving to the circuit;
“From the first lap of FP1, Charles showed a great pace. He had the situation in hand, and Carlos also improved.”
The Spaniard’s defensive driving was critical in this victory:
“Carlos had a good race in the end. He improved during the sessions, and his final P3 in Qualifying allowed us to manage the race better.
“He had to control the gap with Norris behind him, but he did well. This is an important result for the whole team which confirms that we are on the right path.”
The emotion infected the whole team as Ferrari claimed this very important result:
“We are not world champions, but we have been heading in the right direction for some time, and this means that we must continue to push to improve and obtain more results.
“Races like this are motivation for the whole team.” When asked about the drivers’ and constructors’ championship standings, Vasseur was frank:
“I don’t care. There are too many races left. We just have to do a better job starting next weekend in Canada.”
The weekend wasn’t all smooth sailing, despite the excellent pace shown by Ferrari and Charles Leclerc in particular.
“There was a problem in Q1 with that plastic bag, but he remained calm and handled the situation well. Then, the race was strange after the red flag because we only needed to manage one set of tyres until the end.
“Every now and then, he asked us to push because it was difficult to manage so much, but he was very good throughout the race,” commented the Frenchman, once again underlining the performance of his drivers.
