“Mercedes were 28 seconds behind Charles Leclerc” - Ferrari team principal gives savage reply to the German team being a challenge in the future

Ferrari team principal Frederic Vasseur sarcastically claimed that rivals Mercedes have made progress after the Imola Grand Prix. Vasseur's comments came after Lewis Hamilton finished 28 seconds behind Charles Leclerc on Sunday, May 19.

The German team, like their Italian rivals, had brought upgrades to the weekend. However, their performance remained middling as they finished P6 and P7 with Hamilton ahead of George Russell. In contrast, Leclerc finished third behind champion Max Verstappen and Lando Norris, while Carlos Sainz came fifth.

Mercedes never looked like challenging their rivals McLaren and Ferrari in Imola and were quickly adrift of a potential podium after the opening laps.

As per Formu1a.uno, Vasseur replied when asked if Mercedes were making progress:

"They were 28 seconds behind Charles [Leclerc] at the end of the race. So yes, I think they got a little closer."

While speaking about their own upgrades to Sportskeeda, Vasseur said:

"What is true is that we are at the point now where we will have to speed up the development. Imagine that someone could bring an upgrade one race [earlier] when you have three teams in one tenth, you can jump from P5 to P1."

The Ferrari team boss emphasized the speed at which they developed and upgraded the SF-24 to get closer to McLaren and Red Bull, adding:

"It means that we'll have to speed up the time to market, it will be crucial. But we also have to pay attention that we are now chasing the last hundredths. It's not anymore a five-tenth upgrade. It means that you also have to be sure that what you are bringing is working. It will be the key factor for the next couple of events."

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Frederic Vasseur analyzes Ferrari's performance over the Imola GP weekend

Vasseur stated that their failure to fight for the race win on Sunday was connected to their disappointing qualifying on Saturday, where they were the favorites for the pole position.

As per F1.com, the Ferrari team principal said:

"Unfortunately, the outcome of the Grand Prix was very much connected to yesterday’s qualifying and we need to do a better job in the next races as we can now see that our competitiveness in the race itself has really improved."

"We are definitely on the pace now and we can fight for the top spot, even if we still need to make a small step forward," he added.

It would be fascinating to see if Ferrari can work on their qualifying woes before the Monaco Grand Prix this weekend, as the track in the Principality is arguably the toughest to overtake, with Saturday being more important than Sunday.

The Italian team currently sits P2 in the Constructor's Championship with 212 points after seven races and two Sprint races in the 2024 season and is 58 points ahead of third-placed McLaren.