F1 | Alesi on Vasseur: "He's doing an extraordinary job at Ferrari."

The words of Jean Alesi offer an interesting insight into the recent past and present of the Classic Ferrari for sale, highlighting both the difficulties faced and the encouraging signs that emerged at the beginning of the new season.

The former French driver, who defended the Prancing Horse colors on the track from 1991 to 1995, achieving his only Formula 1 victory with Ferrari in the 95 Canadian GP, ​​did not mince his words when describing the Maranello team's difficult previous year, which ended without a win and with a dismal fourth place in the Constructors' Championship behind the queen McLaren, Mercedes and Red Bull.

“At the end of the season, when they asked me how Ferrari's season had gone, I said, 'A catastrophe.' It was a catastrophe, but I didn't say anything wrong. I simply stated the facts,” Alesi said in a recent interview with RacingNews365. A blunt assessment, reflecting the consistently high expectations surrounding the Maranello team and the disappointment over results deemed not up to par with its history.

However, Alesi's tone changes significantly when he analyses the start of the current season, characterised by the new technical regulations, where Ferrari has done well so far, obtaining three podium finishes in as many races.

One of the three, the one won at the end of the Chinese Grand Prix, bears the signature of Lewis Hamilton, with the seven-time world champion who, after a difficult 2025 season, which ended 86 points behind his teammate Charles Leclerc, managed to reach the podium for the first time in a Ferrari suit.

Alesi said he was impressed by the team's progress, emphasizing how the work done has finally led to a competitive car: "And I'm very happy with how they've started the season now, because they've arrived with a Ferrari that's built properly. I'm very impressed." These words highlight a renewed confidence and a positive perception of the path they've taken.

A central role in this rebirth is attributed to the leadership of the team principal Frederic Vasseur, head of Ferrari's Sporting Management from 2023, taking over from Mattia Binotto.

Alesi expressed great appreciation for the work of his fellow French manager, emphasizing the complexity of his role: "Fred, since day one, has been doing an extraordinary job. Being a team principal must be something incredible, complex. I don't know exactly what it's like, but that's how I imagine it."

According to Alesi, leading a Formula 1 team is already a huge challenge in itself, but doing so at Ferrari comes with unique pressure: "But at Ferrari it's a whole different story: it's 100% amplified." This observation highlights how different the Scuderia environment is from any other team in the paddock, where expectations, media attention, and responsibility multiply.

The former driver's statements therefore represent a mix of criticism and optimism: on the one hand, an awareness of past mistakes, on the other, confidence in a project that finally seems to have found a solid direction. If the positive signs are confirmed over the course of the season, even if Mercedes currently appears significantly superior to the competition, as demonstrated by the victories achieved in the first three GPs of 2026, Ferrari could truly return to being a consistent protagonist in the fight at the top.

Ultimately, Alesi photographs a team that has gone through a transition phase with complicated moments, but which now seems ready to relaunch itself thanks to more effective management and a more convincing technical base.