F1 success is like cooking says Ferrari head chef Fred Vasseur

JEDDAH – Ferrari boss Fred Vasseur on April 18 likened success in the cauldron of Formula One to “cooking” after his team made a sluggish start to 2025, Lewis Hamilton’s debut win in scuderia red in the sprint race in China aside.

The iconic Italian marque, without a drivers’ title since Kimi Raikkonen won in 2007, are struggling to take the fight to leaders McLaren, Mercedes and Red Bull, with Charles Leclerc’s pair of fourth-place finishes in Japan and Bahrain their best results.

In the constructors’ battle Ferrari are fourth, lagging 94 points behind McLaren after four rounds of the 24-race season.

Vasseur said there was no quick fix with the teams so close in performance after the period of Red Bull domination.

“The ingredients are all there, but it’s like cooking. You have to put the ingredients together at the right stage,” said the Frenchman ahead of this weekend’s Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.

The 56-year-old, with his good humour and lively intelligence, has proved an assured leader of the scuderia.

“You have to stay calm,” he added. “It’s not a drama. This is only the fifth race. I think it’s true for us, but it’s true for everybody. Today, the front of the pack is so tight that a small mistake can cost five or six positions.

“It means that we need to stay calm and do the analysis.”

Hamilton, only naturally, is taking time to get “bedded in” at his new employers after 12 years with Mercedes.

The seven-time world champion has spoken openly about getting to grips with Ferrari’s SF-25 car and it is different character to the Silver Arrows.

“My focus this weekend is driving style, really getting on top of the circuit and getting into a rhythm,” said the Briton, who arrives in Saudi after