Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur has played down Charles Leclerc’s “now or never” warning, insisting that the Monegasque racer’s dramatic assessment of the team’s chances was simply a matter of post-race emotion.

After finishing fourth at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, one place shy of an eighth podium on the season, Leclerc gave a surprising assessment when asked about his aspirations of becoming world champion. The 28-year-old was forced to endure a winless season with the Scuderia as Ferrari slumped to fourth in the Constructors’ Championship standings.

Asked whether he still believes a World Championship is possible with Ferrari, he replied: “I do,” before adding: “Next year will be a crucial year. Honestly, I think the whole team is hugely motivated for next year, because it’s such a big change, a huge opportunity to show what Ferrari is capable of.

“And it’s now or never, so I really hope that we will start this new era on the right foot, because, it’s important for the four years after. Maybe not in the first three or four races, but by race six or seven, I think we’ll have a good idea of who are the teams that will be dominating for the four years after.”

Leclerc’s assessment was later put to team principal Vasseur, but the Frenchman is not concerned about the prospect of losing the popular Monegasque racer at the start of the new technical regulations.

He explained: “Honestly, I think Charles, if you ever looked last year for sure, when you are going to the TV pen, and you’re asking him after the session, are you happy with the session when it’s P2 or are you happy when it’s P6? It’s not the same Charles, for sure.

“But if you ask him the day after, ‘what do you want to do with the team?’, I think the approach is always the same. It’s always constructive, to try to do better. Even if I’m P1, I have exactly the same approach with the team on the Monday morning, when we are doing the debrief to know and to understand where we can do better.”

There won’t be much time for Vasseur to relax this off-season. On the other side of the garage, the 59-year-old must help recover Lewis Hamilton’s confidence after the seven-time world champion endured a miserable debut season with the Italian constructor that left him counting down the races until the winter break.

Hamilton arrived in Maranello with aspirations of fighting for a record-breaking eighth Drivers’ Championship title, but the 40-year-old ended the campaign without a podium to his name, sitting just six points ahead of rookie Kimi Antonelli in the standings.