Charles Leclerc is ‘really happy’ that Ferrari have now announced that team principal Fred Vasseur has signed a new multi-year contract to stay in Maranello beyond 2025.
The Scuderia broke the news this Thursday morning ahead of the Hungarian Grand Prix that Vasseur has put pen to paper on a fresh contract with Ferrari. Questions have been looming large over the Frenchman’s future in recent months as his previous terms were set to expire.
Ferrari have confirmed that Vasseur’s new contract is a multi-year deal, yet the pride of Italy have not given an exact length for his new terms. The 57-year-old’s previous deal was due to expire after the 2025 F1 season, so he will now lead Ferrari into the new regulations in 2026.
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Charles Leclerc hails Fred Vasseur’s ‘very important’ ability to leave the ‘emotions’ out of being Ferrari’s team principal
Vasseur has been in charge of Ferrari since December 2022 after he replaced Mattia Binotto as the team principal. The Frenchman has taken Ferrari to third place in the F1 constructors’ standings in 2023 and second in 2024, just missing their first title since 2008 by 14 points.
But questions swelled around his future ahead of the Canadian Grand Prix in June, as Ferrari travelled to Montreal already 197 points behind McLaren after nine rounds. It was even said that Vasseur had three races to save his job at Ferrari, which he has more than outlived now.
Ferrari announcing that Vasseur has signed his new contract has also delighted Leclerc, who believes the Draveil native offers a ‘very important’ quality in the role of team principal. The 27-year-old feels Vasseur’s skill in taking his ‘emotions’ out of leading Ferrari is key for them.
“I’m really happy,” Leclerc said in the Thursday press conference ahead of the Hungarian GP. “It’s not that it’s coming as a surprise. Especially in the past month, there were quite a few rumours around the team, so to finally have the official news out is important.
“Fred has an incredible vision, and I think what is very difficult within Ferrari is the emotion is part of the daily job because Italian people, in general, and what makes Ferrari so special are extremely passionate about Ferrari.
“But Fred is able to leave his emotions aside and have a clear vision of where we are at, no matter how much noise there is around the team. This is very, very important.
“Apart from that, he’s got many more qualities. One of them is also to extract the maximum out of every single person at the factory. And, when you put everything together, it makes a big difference.”
Fred Vasseur’s new contract gives Ferrari stability at the top before F1’s 2026 regulations
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Vasseur faced an uncertain future at Ferrari before the Scuderia confirmed his new contract as the 2025 F1 season has not met the expectations that he and the team set at the start of the year. Ferrari believed they would be fighting for the teams’ and drivers’ titles this term.
Instead, Ferrari are second to McLaren ahead of the Hungarian GP and trail their rivals from Woking by 268 points. The Scuderia have only taken 248 points compared to McLaren’s 516 so far this year. Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton are even fifth and sixth in the drivers’ standings.
But since the speculation started that the Frenchman could face the chop, Vasseur regained the support of Ferrari’s board. The pride of Italy are still the only squad among F1’s top four teams without a win or a pole position this year, but Leclerc took P3 in Austria and Belgium.
Vasseur was key to Hamilton joining Ferrari, as well, and he can now focus on putting plans in place so the Scuderia can challenge come F1’s 2026 aerodynamic and engine regulations. His new contract gives Ferrari stability at the top ahead of F1’s biggest rules overhaul so far.
