F1 News: Frederic Vasseur Has The Perfect Driver Line-Up At Ferrari - This Is Why
Ferrari team principal Frederic Vasseur had his sights on Carlos Sainz for his previous F1 teams but was unsuccessful in signing the Spanish driver, twice.
It was announced after the 2022 season came to a close that Mattia Binotto would be stepping down as Ferrari team principal at the end of the year, after working in the team since the mid 1990s.
The Frenchman took over from Binotto as Ferrari team chief at the beginning of the year and is looking to close the gap to Red Bull in the upcoming 2023 season. Vasseur has previously worked with Charles Leclerc when the Monegasque had his F1 debut in 2018 for Sauber, and he has now revealed that he had previously tried to sign Sainz but was unsuccessful.
Vasseur explained in a press conference that he had wanted to sign Sainz whilst working at Renault and Alfa Romeo. He said:
“I started a discussion with Carlos and Carlos’ management when I was at Renault, to attract him and to sign the contract.
“Then he joined [Renault] a bit later. When I was at Sauber I tried to sign Carlos again without success and I said ‘OK, if I want to [work with] Carlos, the best way is to join the team where he is!
“We’ve always had a very good relationship, I trust him and I think he showed in the last couple of years that he is a potential winner, that he’s very important for the team.”
The Ferrari team chief has also confirmed recently that there will not be a number one driver for the team in 2023 to begin with, but they might review this throughout the year. He explained:
"We won't have a number one and number two.
“The organisation is crystal clear that they have to do their job and if at one stage I will have to take action for Carlos or for Charles I will do it."