Ferrari is facing significant pressure following a challenging start to the 2025 Formula 1 season. Sky Sport Italia pundit Vicky Piria shares insights into the mood of the Italian fans, the `tifosi`, as the team prepares for its home race at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix this weekend. This event also marks Lewis Hamilton`s first home race in Italy since joining the Scuderia.
Expectations were high for Ferrari entering 2025, especially after a strong conclusion to the previous season and the high-profile transfer of Lewis Hamilton from Mercedes. Many anticipated title challenges in both championships.
However, the reality has been different. The reigning constructors` champions, McLaren, have shown dominant form, while Red Bull and Mercedes have outperformed Ferrari in the initial six rounds.
Adding to Ferrari`s concerns, their performance in the recent Miami Grand Prix was particularly disappointing. Lewis Hamilton finished in eighth place, a full minute behind the winner, Oscar Piastri, with his teammate Charles Leclerc only slightly ahead in seventh.
For Ferrari, the timing of the first of their two home races on the calendar – Imola this weekend, followed by Monza in September – is perhaps not ideal given their current struggles.
Car Development Decisions Questioned
Vicky Piria suggests that the team`s slow start is even more painful for the tifosi due to the elevated expectations preceding the season.
She commented: “The excitement was huge, but then everything kind of got worse and worse because Miami was pretty bad for Ferrari. The gap between McLaren and Lewis was a minute, so that definitely was something that Italians did not expect.”
“I think Fred (Vasseur), since he started his journey in Ferrari, he’s always been really careful of keeping expectations down to earth. But this year it was different, everybody was really excited. Now everybody is obviously a bit disappointed.”
Ferrari`s decision to significantly redesign their 2024 car, despite its strong performance towards the end of the previous season, has led to some questioning whether a more evolutionary approach would have been better.
Piria explains the fan perspective: “The talk of the people is, ‘you finished the season on a high last year, why did you go along, and completely change the car?’”
“The switch from push rod to pull rod, and they changed a lot of the rear suspension, which is probably the hard point for Ferrari at the moment, having that rear really cling on the ground because they’re really slippery. There’s a lot of oversteer going on.”
Tifosi Passion Remains Strong
Despite the current frustration, Piria is confident the tifosi in Imola will be supportive and hopeful for a change in fortune.
She states: “At the end of the day, the passion is so strong that I don’t believe people will be booing Ferrari. People will be definitely cheering Ferrari and hoping for something to happen.”
“The season is still long. If we think about it, it was around this time of year in 2024 that McLaren really changed the game, in a way, so they definitely think that something is still possible.”
“There will be frustration. I mean, Italians are known to be really emotional. I’m the first one to be really emotional. So that definitely will come up.”
“It takes a lot of time for the tifosi to really get angry and disappointed, but it does not take a lot of time for them to regain their hopes again. And I really think that if these things don’t work, it just takes one race for them to really go ahead and really celebrate.”
Critical Upgrades and 2026 Focus
Imola typically marks the arrival of significant car upgrades as the season moves to Europe. These updates are particularly crucial this year due to the major regulation changes coming in 2026. Teams not contending for wins may soon need to shift focus and resources to the development of the next generation car.
Piria highlights the urgency: “There are obviously some upgrades. I think the feeling is that everybody will really rush into the upgrades in this part of the year because, if you wait, it’s probably too late.”
“And later on in the season, I think your focus and energy needs to be switched to 2026. So, it’s really these next two, three races that teams, and especially Ferrari, will bring upgrades.”
“It really is important that these upgrades work because if the upgrades work and they get closer to the leaders, then obviously you can continue investing on this year. But otherwise, I think you need to switch and look at 2026. And that’s what Ferrari will have to do.”
“That’s why Imola will be important. Imola and Barcelona really will be two really pivotal proving grounds to understand if the focus needs to stay on 2025 or just switch straight away to 2026. Because, honestly, if they’re so far off in Barcelona, then probably it’s better they focus on next year.”
Pressure Mounts on Fred Vasseur
Ferrari Team Principal Frederic Vasseur, who took over at the start of 2023, has generally overseen progress. However, his position could come under increasing scrutiny if the team`s current struggles persist.
Piria observes: “If we think about it, this is the first year that it’s actually 100 per cent Fred. He’s got his technical team, he’s worked on his car, he’s got the drivers he’s chosen, and things are not working the way they’re supposed to work.”
“We’ve seen with this F1 car that it really takes something small for it to underperform or to perform really well. So, I do think still there’s some chance for them to pull themselves up.”
“It’s something that we see a lot in Italian football. As soon as a team underperforms, they go ahead and change the trainer. So, for sure there’s going to be a lot of pressure on Fred.”
“There was in the past on Mattia Binotto when he was underperforming, so knowing the tifosi, there will be. But then again, we’re talking about really just a few tenths of a second, and it doesn’t take much to change the picture.”
“But if the situation that we saw in Miami goes ahead for the next races, then definitely there will be pressure on Fred.”
Kimi Antonelli: A Welcome Distraction
Amidst Ferrari`s difficulties, Italian motorsport fans have found a source of excitement in Andrea Kimi Antonelli. The 18-year-old rookie is having an encouraging debut season with Mercedes and has quickly won over many Italians, especially ahead of his first home race.
Piria notes the enthusiasm: “There’s a lot, a lot, a lot of excitement for Kimi. I think Italians did not expect him to be this fast, to be also this charismatic, to also really shows his Italian origins.”
“He’s taking lasagna for the whole team on Thursday for them to eat. That is something that Italians will love. I think that a lot of focus is switching onto Kimi.”
“I think there was anticipation for Kimi, but I think the tifosi did not absolutely expect Kimi to be so fast and so charismatic. So now it’s just like a Kimi-mania, especially after his pole position in Miami.”
“This will be a really important race for Kimi because he knows the track really well. He did quite a lot of testing here with the F1 car last year. It’s a track he knows well. it’s a track he feels good at, and he’s coming from Miami where he knows that he felt good.”
“So I think there’s going to be even another step in him being fast and probably challenging George (Russell) in some way. So, I really think that there will be a lot of expectations for that.”
Marcus Prine