Ferrari team boss Fred Vasseur has rubbished rumors that the Italian outfit is seeking to recruit Alex Albon to replace Carlos Sainz for 2025.
The rumor mill was set spinning by a the Italian media which claimed last week that Albon was at the top of Ferrari's list to replace Sainz when the latter's contract with the Scuderia expires at the end of 2024.
While Vasseur is well acquainted with Albon, having run the Anglo-Thai racer in GP3 with his ART outfit, and although the Frenchman is impressed with the Williams driver's results this season, he insists there is no credence to the hearsay placing Albon at Ferrari.
"I don't know where this story came from," Vasseur told Motorsport.com's Italian edition. "I've run Albon in the past, and we're friends.
"If a reporter asks me if Alex is currently doing a good job, I would say yes. But that doesn't mean I'm interested in taking him.
"I think Alex also has a contract with Williams for 2024. The team is investing a lot, so there is no problem."
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Both Sainz and teammate Charles Leclerc are contracted to Ferrari for 2024. But Vasseur made clear that the future of the Scuderia's driver line-up is not a pressing issue.
"I was clear with the team at the beginning of the season, and I was also clear with the drivers, that I need to get to know the team first. And it takes months," he said.
"They still have a one-year contract, so I don't think it's an issue that needs to be discussed now. We'll certainly talk about it in the future, but it's not the first concern.
"The priority, for everyone, is to focus on the team, especially this season. I don't want there to be any distracting elements."
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So far, Leclerc and Sainz have enjoyed a harmonious relationship at the Scuderia, on and off the track. Vasseur holds the talented Monegasque in high regard although he admits that he is sometimes guilty of over-driving.
"Leclerc is capable of exceptional things," he explained. "Sometimes he does things that you don't know where he got them from.
"Charles is a driver who always thinks about winning. Our car is behind the Red Bull, but he is still there thinking about trying to win.
"In certain situations, we have seen him push too much, and go into over-driving. He tries to compensate for the shortcomings with strategy, with being aggressive, and with the risk of making mistakes.
"My job is to direct him in the right way. When we have a car that is capable of taking second place, we have to take pride of place there. Of course, it's also right to look at what happens in front."
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As for Sainz, Vasseur believes the Spaniard has a better grip on consistency than Leclerc, but he also doesn't have the "peaks" enjoyed by the latter.
"Carlos is very consistent," he added. "He is able to manage his own pace and does it a little better than Charles.
"He doesn't overdrive, but he doesn't have the big peaks of Charles, when, for example, he takes pole positions.
"Sometimes he is very close to him. In Miami, up to the last corner, he was on pole. He limits the bad mistakes and he's always there."
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