Fred Vasseur reveals Charles Leclerc Ferrari instruction 'he cannot change'

Fred Vasseur has explained how he cannot tell Charles Leclerc to change his F1 approach after the Monegasque's fierce self-criticism.

After qualifying in sixth place at the recent British Grand Prix, in a radio transmission that was not broadcast, Leclerc labelled himself as "f**king s**t" after a perceived poor final lap. 

The race that followed was a strategic disaster for the team after Leclerc pitted on the formation lap for slick tyres, going on to finish a miserable 14th. 

Leclerc is renowned as one of, if not the fastest driver over a single lap in F1, with a total of 26 grand prix poles to his name.

This places him 12th on the all-time list, equal with Mika Hakkinen. Only Lewis Hamilton (104) and Max Verstappen (44) are active drivers with more pole positions. 

During the 2023 season, Leclerc took five poles, including three of the last five, but failed to convert any into a victory, prompting a discussion with Vasseur, which the Frenchman now insists he cannot get Leclerc to alter.

"One of Charles' qualities is that he can blame himself, and one of the faults of Charles is that sometimes he blames himself too much," Vasseur told the media, including RacingNews365.

"I appreciate a lot that the driver can say, 'Okay, it was my mistake' and this is a positive because it is not bringing the team in the right direction.

"It shows that they are human, they make mistakes like everybody, and it is good to have drivers able to see this. 

"I remember two years ago we were telling him that, 'Charles, we are scoring points on Sunday, let's be more focused on Sunday,' because in 2023, we did five or six pole positions and had zero wins for Charles. 

"We were pushing him in this direction, and now we can't tell him to go back to the previous situation."