26/12/2024
NEWS STORY
Ferrari boss rubbishes Max Verstappen's claim that he could have won the title in either the McLaren or Ferrari.
The competition between drivers isn't limited to the track, fact is all racing drivers are competitive in almost every aspect of their lives.
They also enjoy nothing better than riling their rivals, such as claiming that their opponents didn't make the most of their opportunities.
Once his fourth title had been safely secured, Max Verstappen opined that had he been at the wheel of either the McLaren or the Ferrari he would still have won the title, causing Lando Norris to suggest the Dutchman take up comedy, while Charles Leclerc described the claim as a "bit of a stretch".
Talking to Autosprint, Fred Vasseur has also dismissed the four-time world champion's suggestion.
"It makes no sense to think or say that in another team Verstappen would have won the same since it is not possible to separate the performance of a driver from that of his car," said the Frenchman.
"There are too many elements involved," he added. "It makes no sense to say that Verstappen would have won in a McLaren as well since the quality level of Woking's team also depends on feedback and work done with its current drivers."
With the rules almost stagnant, Red Bull's utter domination of the 2023 season was not repeated, for while the RB20 wasn't the car its predecessor was, obvious turmoil within the team coupled with the shortcomings of Sergio Perez put the Austrian outfit under enormous pressure at a time performance among the top teams was clearly converging.
Updates introduced in Miami saw McLaren become the main threat, and while Mercedes see-sawed in terms of performance, Ferrari finally got its act together and battled the Woking outfit down to the wire for the constructors' title.
"In 2022 and 2023 the Red Bull was much better," Vasseur acknowledged. "When you have six-tenths margin, you can make mistakes and nobody notices it and you are beatified. This year, however, it was enough of a small mistake to take the team of Milton Keynes down to sixth place."
However, the Frenchman admits that as Red Bull came under increasing pressure - from without and within - it was Verstappen who made the difference.
"What impressed me was his ability to extract the best even when they struggled," he said. "And this is a lesson for us, because over the course of a season in such a competitive context there are races where we are not the strongest, but it is necessary to maximize the result.
"To win, you need to make a difference when you're not in the right place... that's where he has made a difference."