Vasseur: late VSC may have cost Ferrari a US GP double podium

Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur believes a late virtual safety car cost the team a chance at a double podium in the United States Grand Prix. After the race, he said Ferrari probably would have put both cars on the podium without the interruption, but he could not say whether Lewis Hamilton would have finished third or fourth.

Valtteri Bottas stopped his Cadillac after a mechanical failure, triggering the VSC as Hamilton closed on Max Verstappen for third. The neutralisation preserved Verstappen's third place; Charles Leclerc finished second behind Kimi Antonelli.

Vasseur also pointed to Ferrari's final two Q3 laps on Saturday as the point where the team had missed something. He agreed Leclerc had the underlying pace to win in different circumstances. Ferrari's strategy had to be aggressive because the team needed to overtake, he said.