Following a significantly disappointing start to the 2025 Formula 1 season, Vicky Piria of Sky Sport Italia assesses the mood among the passionate Ferrari fans, known as the tifosi, as the team prepares for its return home for this weekend`s Emilia Romagna Grand Prix.
Expectations were substantial for Ferrari to challenge for both the drivers` and constructors` championships this year. This optimism stemmed from a strong finish to the 2024 season and the high-profile arrival of Lewis Hamilton from Mercedes during the off-season.
However, the reality has been different. Reigning constructors` champions McLaren have established themselves as a dominant force, while Red Bull and Mercedes have proven to be much stronger competitors than Ferrari across the initial six races of the season.
Adding to Ferrari`s worries, their performance in the most recent race in Miami was particularly poor. Lewis Hamilton finished a distant eighth place, a full minute behind winner Oscar Piastri, while his teammate Charles Leclerc was only slightly better off in seventh.
From Ferrari`s perspective, the timing for the first of their two home races on the 2025 calendar is perhaps not ideal. Imola hosts this weekend`s event, followed by the Italian Grand Prix at Monza in September, placing the team under intense scrutiny on home soil.
Car Design Questions and Unmet Expectations
Vicky Piria, a former W Series driver and pundit for Sky Sport Italia, suggests that the high expectations set before the season began have made the team`s slow start even more challenging for the fans to accept.
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,” Piria added. “Now everybody is obviously a bit disappointed.”
Despite ending the 2024 season strongly, Ferrari significantly redesigned their car for 2025. This decision has led some to question whether it would have been more beneficial to focus on developing last year`s successful model instead.
According to Piria, “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,” she explained.
Tifosi Passion Prevails Over Frustration
Despite the frustration surrounding Ferrari`s start to the season, Piria believes the passionate tifosi will arrive in Imola filled with hope for a turnaround in form.
She stated, “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.”
Piria highlighted that the season is still long and pointed to McLaren`s significant mid-season performance improvement in 2024 as a reason for fans to remain optimistic. “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,” she admitted.
She noted instances like Lewis Hamilton`s sprint win in China and his podium finish in Miami as sources of hope. “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,” Piria concluded.
Crucial Upgrades and the 2026 Focus
Imola is traditionally the first European race on the calendar and a key event where teams introduce significant car upgrades. Most teams are expected to bring new parts this weekend.
These updates hold even greater importance this season due to major regulatory changes scheduled for 2026. Teams not realistically competing for victories this year are likely to redirect their resources and focus towards developing their cars for the next era of regulations.
Piria explained, “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,” she said.
She stressed the necessity of these upgrades working effectively. “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,” Piria stated. “Because, honestly, if they`re so far off in Barcelona, then probably it`s better they focus on next year.”
Pressure on Team Principal Vasseur
Frederic Vasseur, the Ferrari team principal, has generally had a successful period since taking the helm at the beginning of 2023. However, his position could face increasing pressure if the team`s current struggles continue.
Piria pointed out, “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.”
She acknowledged the sensitive nature of F1 cars. “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.”
Drawing a parallel to Italian football, Piria said, “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,” she added.
However, she warned, “But if the situation that we saw in Miami goes ahead for the next races, then definitely there will be pressure on Fred.”
`Kimi-mania` Provides a Potential Bright Spot
Italian motorsport fans have found some success to celebrate with Andrea Kimi Antonelli, who has made a promising start to his debut season with Mercedes.
The 18-year-old rookie secured his first F1 pole position during the Miami Grand Prix Sprint and has quickly captured the affection of many Italians ahead of his own home race debut.
Piria noted the immense excitement for Antonelli. “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,” she revealed.
She reiterated the surprise surrounding his performance. “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.”
Imola is expected to be a crucial race for Antonelli. “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,” Piria said.
“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,” she concluded.
