'We Made Mistakes': Ferrari Boss Fred Vasseur Reflects On Lewis Hamilton’s Tough Debut
A lack of proper in-race communication from Team Ferrari resulted in multiple poor decisions that ultimately cost Hamilton a handful of positions, leaving him 10th at the finish.
Ferrari chief Fred Vasseur has opened up about his team’s pit-to-car radio miscommunication during the Australian Grand Prix 2025. The seven-time world champion’s first event with Ferrari didn’t quite go as planned. Lack of proper in-race communication from Team Ferrari resulted in multiple poor decisions that ultimately cost Hamilton a handful of positions, leaving him 10th at the finish. Vasseur has now called on Ferrari to improve its in-race communication for better results at future events. “It was the first race, the first time that we have to communicate between the pit wall and the car, and we can do a better job and know each other more," Vasseur told ESPN.
Hamilton made his highly-anticipated debut with the Scuderia in Melbourne last week. The ex-Mercedes star started the race eighth but finished in 10th place after spending a huge portion of the Grand Prix behind Williams driver Alex Albon. The radio communications were an issue for Ferrari at the Melbourne Grand Prix Circuit. During the race, Hamilton repeatedly asked his new race engineer, Riccardo Adami, not to remind him about using a power setting known as K1. The British racer briefly led the race in the closing stages but only because he chose to stay out in the wet conditions while the rest of the competition made pit stops.
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Speaking further about Hamilton’s debut with Ferrari, Vasseur discussed how the Australian Grand Prix wasn’t a ‘clean’ event for his team. “For sure it was not a clean one at all, the strategy was difficult and we needed to find a better way to communicate between the car and the pit wall but we will learn from Race 1 and it is not an issue," he said.
The Ferrari chief also revealed he wasn’t shocked to see Hamilton struggle because of the wet conditions on Sunday. “It was not a shock but for sure it was not a good weekend for us. But we focus on next week [the Chinese Grand Prix] and learn a lot from this weekend because we made mistakes," he added.
Vasseur believed that Ferrari would likely perform much better in China. “We need to improve the communication, and understand what Lewis needs from the communication, and it is only in this situation that we can be in the situation. We will be much better next week," he concluded.
While Hamilton struggled on debut, McLaren driver Lando Norris made history by piping Max Verstappen to win the Australian Grand Prix. The Dutch-Belgian racer finished in second place whereas Hamilton’s ex-teammate George Russell came third.
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