At Scuderia, the end of each season is marked by inviting journalists to a meal to review the past season. However, this Tuesday, the focus was more on envisioning a bright future.
The tradition is as old as the brand itself. Before Christmas, Enzo Ferrari used to host a few journalists. Initially exclusively Italian, these Emilian feasts later opened up to certain foreign guests. Successive leaders, Luca di Montezemolo, Jean Todt, Sergio Marchionne, and Mattia Binotto, continued and modified them according to their character, desires, and the message they wanted to convey.
Frédéric Vasseur could not break this tradition; he merely adapted it to align with his vision for Scuderia. Far from the statue of Commendatore of Enzo Ferrari or the theatrical emphasis of Montezemolo, the Frenchman presented himself to the press for an interview of nearly an hour before sitting down to eat. And this year, every fifteen minutes, key figures from Scuderia would switch tables to interact, share, and introduce themselves.
For Vasseur, the idea was clearly to convey the message that, thanks to his team – as he has recruited or promoted many – the best is yet to come. Enrico Gualtieri, in charge of engines, spoke passionately about the challenge of 2026 and engines; Jérôme d’Ambrosio, Vasseur’s new deputy, about the desire to succeed, to “perform, which oozes from every pore of this factory”, and Diego Ioverno, who became sporting director since Vasseur’s arrival, launched into a long tirade… about tortellinis, the only dish always present at the Christmas table of Fiorano, imposed by the Commendatore and never abandoned since.
The Italian speaks like an engineer, reminding us that the correct size of a tortellino is measured by the spoon used to scoop it from the broth: six should fit. The gastronome then detailed the difference in preparation of this tiny raviolo between Modena, the birthplace of Enzo Ferrari, where the meat is already cooked, and Bologna. Frédéric Vasseur, also hungry, was primarily interested in reviewing the events of 2024, and facing the barrage of questions about the much-anticipated arrival of Lewis Hamilton. As for us French, this meal was an opportunity to see Loïc Serra finally start in his new role as technical director.
“Those Damned 14 Points”
When it came time to review the season, Vasseur was torn. He was caught between the satisfaction of having competed for the constructors’ crown until the last race and the frustration of having lost it. “Since Abu Dhabi, I’ve been wondering where we misplaced those damned 14 points,” he grumbled on several occasions. “It wasn’t in the last race that we lost the title, but throughout the season.” Behind him, a PowerPoint presentation showed how much Scuderia had progressed, in victories, podiums, and points scored. He dismissed this with a sentence: “I know all this, I was there.” He emphasized the double retirement in Canada (engine for Leclerc, collision for Sainz). “When you turn in a paper with a double zero, you know you lose a lot,” he concluded fatalistically. “Especially since McLaren hardly ever retired” (Norris’s collision in Austria). “I can tell you that the team has learned its lesson…”
“What’s with you and Lewis?”
As tables were set just a few meters from the Fiorano track, where the Sainz, father and son, had just bid farewell to Ferrari at the wheel of two 2022 F1s, the desire to see Lewis Hamilton, the Scuderia’s next recruit, drive on the team’s private track heated up the assembly. Under the barrage of questions, Vasseur did not flinch, refusing to give any information on the date and manner in which his driver will begin his life in red. “I don’t want to do anything special for Lewis’s arrival,” he finally let slip. “We are here to win and everything will be done to put him in the best conditions. Without interference.” We only learned that Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc will officially present the 2025 car on February 19, the day after the big London show to which all teams are invited to celebrate the 75th anniversary of F1. And that this event will take place at Fiorano.
For the rest, the French boss defended his British recruit. “I have never had any doubt about Lewis’s talent. And if he has faltered a bit in qualifying on Saturdays, his Sunday races, especially those in Las Vegas or Abu Dhabi, prove that he has lost nothing,” he recalled, before taking a jab at his friend Toto Wolff, boss of Mercedes: “And if you tell me that Lewis is not as good as he was three years ago, I believe his car has also become so…”
As for how the Ferrari boss managed to convince the Mercedes driver, we will have to stick to the reminder that the two men have known each other for a long time. “I had no trouble deciding,” he concluded with a smile. “He’s been telling me for twenty years that he wants to race for the Scuderia.” He ended this long conference with a seemingly annoyed exit: “What’s with you and Lewis?”
“Two seasons in one”
Frenchman Loïc Serra, a close friend of Pierre Waché, technical director of Red Bull, has long worked in the shadows at Mercedes. Having arrived at the technical direction of Ferrari in October, he is now in the spotlight, especially for his track debut at Yas Marina (Abu Dhabi) during the test day about ten days ago, which allowed him to familiarize himself with the racing team.
For Serra, a discreet almost shy engineer, coming before the press on Tuesday was not easy. However, once seated in front of his tortellinis, he regained his usual ease to talk about technique, the 2025 car but also the 2026 one, this challenge of two seasons in one. “We don’t stop the design of an F1 one day to freeze everything,” he explains passionately. “Yes, when I arrived, next year’s car was already well advanced, but we can continue to do a lot of things. And we must also think that next season will be double, we must also think about 2026, with all the regulatory changes (especially aero and especially engine).” A double dose of work.
