Leclerc on Ferrari’s strategy reshuffle: ‘Time will tell…’

Ahead of the new campaign, Ferrari moved their head of strategy Inaki Rueda out of the line of fire and into a factory role, with Ravin Jain now tasked with the high-pressure position on the pit wall. 

It came after Ferrari’s strategy calls came under the spotlight last season as the Italian outfit’s title challenge collapsed in speculator fashion, enabling Max Verstappen and Red Bull to run away with both world championships. 

Addressing Ferrari’s strategy problems is one of the key priorities for new team principal Fred Vasseur, who replaced Mattia Binotto at the start of the year. 

“There have been a few changes but I wouldn’t want to comment too much on that,” Leclerc said during Thursday’s FIA press conference ahead of this weekend’s Bahrain Grand Prix. 

“We are trying to do what’s best for the team. Fred came and saw already a few things.

“It’s too early to judge too because these things are affecting the race in itself. So we’ll see. And time will tell whether these were the right choices.”

Leclerc, who has enjoyed a close relationship with Vasseur throughout his career, praised the Frenchman’s early impact since arriving at Maranello. 

“It’s still very early days but I think what Fred is really, really good at is to extract the best out of the people by putting them in the best conditions,” the Monegasque said. 

“This we can already see some benefits, so that’s great. I’m pretty sure he will discover much more things and see how the team works on a race weekend starting from tomorrow. 

"So it’s still early days, but at least it feels good and it was impressive to see how well he got at ease with such a big team straight away. That was important, too.”

Leclerc will hope the changes can help him mount a successful challenge to Verstappen and Red Bull, who have already been cast as the clear favourites in F1 2023. 

Leclerc downplayed pre-season testing form amid paddock rumours that Red Bull could hold an advantage of half a second over the rest of the field at the start of the season. 

“During testing, depending on at what time of the day you are doing the lap times, it’s very difficult to judge,” he said. “So we’ll wait and see how far off we are.

“But having said that I also believe fully in my team and in the upgrades that we are bringing, we have a view of what we are bringing in the next few months and it looks positive. And by focusing on ourselves, I’m sure we’ll do a great job.”