Former Ferrari team president Luca di Montezemolo, has struggled to resist commenting on Ferrari’s current state of affairs.
As the 2016 season is now past the half way stage with the Ferrai team struggling for form, many sections of the media (in particular the Italian press), believe the Maranello based team to be in a crisis.
2007 World Champion Kimi ‘the iceman’ Raikkonen admits:“We were ahead of Red Bull and now they’re ahead of us.
“It has been a bit painful, but we will improve,” said the Finn.
New Ferrari president Sergio Marchionne is calling the shots and remains very bullish in doing so. The recent fallout between James Allison and the team though sends the message out that all is not well behind the factory walls. There are calls from some quarters for team boss Maurizio Arrivabene to be relieved of his duties, and also for new engineers to be recruited. An injection of new personnel may help to change the direction of the team’s season, and bring some much needed ‘spark’ into Maranello.
Marchionne earlier this week said that his team already have some “phenomenal talent”, and that suggestions the team needs new blood and direction to be ‘excessive’.
The latest word from La Gazzetta dello Sport is: “Ferrari will not give up or raise the white flag, but they are only the third force.”
And Corriere della Sera added: “Ferrari’s free fall continues, but the team bosses keep the faith.”
Amid the turmoil, former Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo arrived in Rio this week to promote Italy’s chances of securing the 2024 Olympic Games.
La Gazzetta quoted him as saying: “I love Ferrari, so the best thing is not to say too much.”
Luca couldn’t keep quiet for too long though, as he confided in Ferrari-linked insider Leo Turrini in Rio:
“I do not speak about Ferrari, except to say that it pleases me that Marchionne claims there are formidable people within the company.
“In fact, they were there even two years ago, as they are all people I appointed,” Montezemolo added.
Although he clearly loves Ferrari, Luca must be smiling inside over the teams fall from grace, after he was forced to leave the team in 2014 with 3 years on his contract still to run.
The biggest pressure is on Marchionne, but will he change his ways? Luca was a formula one man through and through, Sergio is yet to prove his knowledge in this area of the Ferrari business.
If Ferrari’s fall from grace continues into next year, I can’t see Vettel staying there. His contract ends at end of next year and he may have an extension to end of ’18 when Hamilton’s, Rosberg’s and Ricciardo’s end too.
With the new regs, who knows which team/s will ‘steal’ an early march and of course any of the top drivers would want to go there.
Luca certainly said enough! Of course, the Italian press…is the Italian press, and Ferrari must, Must, MUST WIN.
As we say in Brazil, bem feito. Sums up my feelings for Ferrari’s struggles.
Where could Vettel go?
Never put a corporate guy in charge of any race team. Period.