Vasseur wants fewer mistakes from Alfa Romeo after pointless run

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Alfa Romeo team boss Frederic Vasseur says his team needs to iron out its mistakes and work harder after its pointless run in the last few races.

Kimi Raikkonen delivered a string of top-ten finishes to the Alfa team in the opening four races of 2019, results that augured well for the Hinwil squad's campaign.

However, performance has fallen short of expectations since Barcelona, with Antonio Giovinazzi's meager P13 in Canada representing its best finish.

Vasseur believes it's time Alfa puts its season back on track.

Raikkonen banking on upgrades to revive Alfa's pace

"The last three races didn’t go to plan, but it would be too easy to put it down to bad luck or unfortunate circumstances," said the Alfa Romeo boss ahead of this weekend's French Grand Prix.

"As a team we need to do fewer mistakes and we need to work harder, which we have done after coming back from Canada, to get the full potential out of our car.

"At the same time there is no reason to talk ourselves down, we’re showing fighting spirit and we’ll make the most of the developments we have lined up for the next few races.

"I am confident we can recover the speed we showed earlier in the season and get back in the fight for points."

Giovinazzi was the recipient last weekend of the prestigious Trofeo Bandini award, an honor that will hopefully spur on the young Italian whose performance year to date has been subdued.

"Joining the champions who received the award is an honor but also a great responsibility," said the 25-year-old.

"It’s a big push to do better and demonstrate I deserve this recognition.

"I believe hard work is the only way to achieve great results and it’s not going to be different in Formula 1.

"I’m focused on my goal, no matter how tough the way to get there is, and I want to make sure we get the rewards for our work, those rewards that have eluded us so far.

"I am not losing confidence; I know we can do it as a team. Only those who don’t fight have already lost, and we’re never going to give up."

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Phillip van Osten

Motor racing was a backdrop from the outset in Phillip van Osten's life. Born in Southern California, Phillip grew up with the sights and sounds of fast cars thanks to his father, Dick van Osten, an editor and writer for Auto Speed and Sport and Motor Trend. Phillip's passion for racing grew even more when his family moved to Europe and he became acquainted with the extraordinary world of Grand Prix racing. He was an early contributor to the monthly French F1i Magazine, often providing a historic or business perspective on Formula 1's affairs. In 2012, he co-authored along with fellow journalist Pierre Van Vliet the English-language adaptation of a limited edition book devoted to the great Belgian driver Jacky Ickx. He also authored "The American Legacy in Formula 1", a book which recounts the trials and tribulations of American drivers in Grand Prix racing. Phillip is also a commentator for Belgian broadcaster Be.TV for the US Indycar series.