Ferrari boss reflects on effects of treating Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz equally in 2023

Team principal Frederic Vasseur hinted that Ferrari will treat Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz equally in the 2024 F1 season following up on the 2023 fundamentals.

Ferrari finished in third place in the previous season, three points behind Mercedes. While the season was rather a rollercoaster for the team, they found good traction in the final stages, making huge leaps in points.

Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz finished the season in 5th and 7th place respectively, just six points apart. Their almost similar contribution was because of Frederic Vasseur's equal treatment of the drivers, as he stated.

"We have two drivers who finished with almost the same score," Formu1a.uno quoted Vasseur as saying. "We found ourselves here talking about first and second drivers, and I assured them that they would be treated the same way. And I think we proved it."

Vasseur stated that one of the biggest examples of teamwork came in Singapore, where Carlos Sainz, who was leading the race, essentially received help from the other Ferrari.

Charles Leclerc did not pit and raced on soft tires to protect his teammate from a charging George Russell. Eventually, Sainz won the race and it became the first and only race of the 2023 F1 season not to be won by a Red Bull car.

"Charles agreed to start with the Softs to overtake and block Russell, and they worked well together," Vasseur said.

The two drivers share an excellent partnership in the team. It seems apparent that heading into the 2024 season, Ferrari will follow the same formula and treat both drivers equally. They are hoping to get competitive at the top and fight for victories next season after their upward development in the previous season.

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Despite reports of Charles Leclerc's extension, no rush at Ferrari for drivers' contract signings

Both the Ferrari drivers have a contract with the team till the end of the 2024 season along with a couple of other drivers on the grid.

There has been a report stating that Charles Leclerc has agreed to a five-year extension with the team which will keep him secure till the 2029 season. It was further mentioned that they might provide Carlos Sainz with a two-year extension and keep an eye on the drivers' market.

Despite the reports, however, Frederic Vasseur revealed to Sky Italy that the team is in "no rush" to extend the contracts.

"We are not in a rush to extend the deals but have started discussions. Mercedes did it in August. We are not in a rush at all. This season, I was expecting to do it before the end of the year. But the season was a huge one and we have started the discussion. But, again, we are not in a rush," Vasseur stated.

Charles Leclerc has been behind the Scuderia steering wheel since the 2019 season and is still deprived of a world championship. There were good chances of the team getting ahead in the 2022 season, however, Red Bull eventually took the win.