“I have great respect for him”
Mercedes team boss jumps on the side
07/19/2025 – 11:47 a.m.Reading time: 1 min.
Ferrari remains behind the expectations in Italy in Formula 1. Team boss Fred Vasseur was therefore criticized. Now a competitor is protecting him.
Ferrari fights for second place in the constructor classification – team boss Fred Vasseur is the focus of some critics in Italy. Because the distance between the Scuderia on leader McLaren is already 238 points. Vasseur, who has been in office since 2023, now gets support from a direct rival: Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff.
The 53-year-old demonstratively faced Fred Vasseur. He emphasized: “I think you can’t buy time in Formula 1, but you have to give the managers time to familiarize yourself.” As an example, he cited the work of the former Ferrari team boss Jean Todt, who came to Scuderia in 1993, but only celebrated success with Michael Schumacher from 2000.
Wolff said that you had to “get a thicker fur” in the role of team boss. Because as soon as Vasseur gets in, he is celebrated in Italy as “Jesus Christ”, against failures, “he is the loser”. That is an expression of Italian passion. In terms of Vasseur, Wolff still believes: “You won’t find a better one.”
The Mercedes team boss said: “I have great respect for him. He has a great personality, a straight guy. He does not do a policy, does not ly and knows what he speaks.” You have to show him the necessary trust. Vasseur is aware that his job in Italy is comparable to that of the coach of the national soccer team – with constant observation of the media.