Ferrari says plenty of work still needed to convert Friday pace into Monaco GP success

Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur says there is still a lot of work to be done during the Monaco Grand Prix weekend to be able to capitalize on the pace seen in Friday practice.

Lewis Hamilton led the way in FP2 from teammate Charles Leclerc as Ferrari topped the times, with only Max Verstappen able to get within 0.35s of the pair. That followed a first practice session that was also a Ferrari one-two – with Leclerc quickest – and a bigger gap to the chasing pack, but Vasseur says there are no guarantees despite the pre-event predictions that Ferrari would be favorite.

“No, I don't care about this kind of approach or rumors – we have to do the job,” Vasseur said. “It's a very long way in Monaco from Friday first to the qualifying and then to the race.

“The most difficult is that you have to anticipate the evolution of the track, the evolution of the grip, and you have to always be one session ahead; this is a real challenge for the team and for the drivers. It means that it's still a long way, and we'll see tomorrow evening about the real pace.”

Vasseur was encouraged that Hamilton appeared to be continuing his strong form from Canada, however, after the seven-time world champion finished second in Montreal.

“I think, for sure, it's important, and it's important for the competitiveness of the team at the end, because to have a positive emulation between them is also helping both sides of the garage, and it's also helping the team to develop the car," he said. "The momentum is good, but the most important is that the momentum will be good tomorrow evening.”

Despite the pace on show, Leclerc says he has been facing ongoing issues with his brakes that hampered his Friday performance.

“Very difficult [day],” Leclerc said. “We are facing quite a few issues on brakes on my side, so we are trying to fix those, so the confidence is not at the highest level at the moment. But apart from that, it's a track I love and I'm sure that if we manage to fix those for tomorrow, it will be a good step forward. Unfortunately it's been since Canada that I'm struggling a little bit on that, so we are trying to find solutions. I hope we do for tomorrow, and if so, I don't doubt that we will do a step forward.

“It's very specific what we are having, and yes, it's a similar issue in Canada as in here. We are working towards making the situation better. We didn't manage to find a clear solution so far, but I hope we can for tomorrow.”

With Verstappen a close third in FP2, Leclerc sees two major threats for pole position but is confident he will be in the mix on Saturday.

“Max has been very strong... and we are very close to Lewis in FP2, so I'm not so worried, but it's going to be a tough qualifying for sure. It's going to be very tight, and if we do a step forward with the brakes, surely it can help us fight for pole.”