Vasseur explains how Hamilton and Leclerc saved Ferrari’s day at Sepang

Ferrari’s decision to start on slicks at the Malaysian Grand Prix initially threatened to derail its race. The track dried more slowly than the team expected, leaving Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc to recover from an early strategic misjudgment. They ultimately finished third and fourth, a result that owed something to retirements and rival trouble—but also to strong driving and convincing race pace.

Team principal Fred Vasseur acknowledged the error. “It’s clear that it was better to start with inters, but we made the choice with the information that we had,” he said. Ferrari had expected the circuit to dry quickly, but the switch to intermediates came at a significant cost: Vasseur put the pit-stop loss at 26 seconds.

Leclerc’s race was further disrupted by contact with Nico Hulkenberg at the start. He pitted immediately for intermediates and a new front wing. Hamilton, by contrast, stayed out on slicks after Ferrari left the decision to him. Vasseur said the driver was free to pit if he judged that to be the right move.

Pace turned recovery into a result

Hamilton made the alternative strategy work with a long stint on the soft tyre and effective tyre management. Vasseur praised the smoothness of the approach, while noting that the race’s ultimate potential was difficult to assess: starting on intermediates would have put Ferrari in a different position, but running ahead is not the same as overtaking a large group of cars.

The team’s pace, however, was clear. Vasseur said Ferrari had shown strong speed in qualifying and that its race pace was notably better than in recent events. Conditions added uncertainty: practice took place with track temperatures around 60 degrees, while the race was roughly 30 degrees cooler. The mixed choice of soft, medium and hard tyres after the Safety Car restart further underlined how varied the strategic picture had become.

Ferrari leaves with a result built on recovery rather than a clean execution. Asked about carrying the form into the following weekend, Vasseur joked that he would first have a beer, then assess the next challenge. His expectation was still clear: Ferrari hoped to perform well again, but he stressed that every race is different.