Vasseur insists Ferrari not in 'panic mode'

Ferrari boss Frederic Vasseur insists that the team are not in "panic mode" over their form in the first races of the 2023 F1 season.

After a difficult start to the campaign, the Scuderia had a more positive outing during the Azerbaijan Grand Prix weekend, with Charles Leclerc claiming pole position for both the Sprint race and Sunday's main event.

However, the SF-23 was unable to match the pace of Red Bull at the Baku City Circuit. Sergio Perez took victory in both events, while Leclerc finished in P2 and P3 respectively.

While Vasseur acknowledges that he would prefer for Ferrari to have had a better start to the year, the Frenchman has also praised the squad for their reaction to the situation.

Vasseur: Ferrari never in panic mode

"We were expecting to be in a better shape at the beginning and I don’t want to bull***t you," Vasseur told media, including RacingNews365.com.

"But what I'm very pleased with is the reaction of the team, because we are never in a panic mode.

"After the first two events when it went [badly] – Jeddah was tough for us. But the reaction between Jeddah and Melbourne was a very good one.

"And the approach even on the development was never really in a panic or to change everything on the car.

"A complete 'B car' was not the plan, we were always focused to bring small update by small update to understand what we are doing first, to understand where we can improve the potential, reach the potential of the car first.

"I'm more than pleased with this kind of reaction, but for sure I would love to be in a better shape."

Ferrari currently sit fourth in the Constructors' standings on 62 points, 14 points behind third-placed Mercedes.