Luca-di-montezemolo
Former Ferrari President Says Ferrari Have Only Themselves To Blame For Current Struggles
Formula One

Ferrari’s 2020 F1 campaign is a downfall similar to the Fall of the Roman Empire. The Marcus Aurelius of Ferrari, Luca di Montezemolo, has voiced his opinion on why Ferrari is stuck in a rut. The Former Ferrari boss was a handpicked Enzo Ferrari protege who revived the the F1 team on two separate occasions. His most successful period arose when he masterminded the team’s dominance with Michael Schumacher at the helm. Di Montezemolo brought in the best to surround Schumacher with all that he needed to win. It took three years to attain such preeminence, but the Schumacher era was built around Di Montezemolo’s leadership. However, by 2014 di Montezemolo was removed from his position by the late Sergio Marchionne, a move that ultimately led to Ferrari’s current woes.

The 2020 Belgian Grand Prix saw Ferrari compete at the back of the mid-field, a race that rubber-stamped a severe lack of competitiveness. During a recent media interview, Di Montezemolo observed that Ferrari did not prepare for the V6 Hybrid era. The team failed to give enough support to Sebastian Vettel. He also criticised the manner in which Ferrari decided to dispose of Vettel and that Vettel shared no blame in Ferrari’s loss of form.

“He has never caused any problems and always works from the team point of view. And he has won many races that other drivers would not have won. I am therefore not happy with the way Vettel has been treated. The timing was not right and the way it was done was certainly not right.” said Di Montezemolo.

Di Montezemolo also cited the departure of key technical personnel such as James Alison, who went on to become the technical director at Mercedes F1. He also mused at the management.

“The people who managed Ferrari then had neither experience in Formula 1 nor competence for Formula 1, and they thought that you could win quickly in Formula 1 just like that.”

Transferring road car technicians into the world of Formula 1 has also blighted Ferrari’s competitiveness. It was a mistake to do so because the F1 skillset is completely different to the road car program. Di Montezemolo believes Ferrari has to hire the best people and not hire individuals based on the false god of patriotism.

“Enzo Ferrari always told me that if there is, I am exaggerating now, the best driver in Guatemala, get him.” said Di Montezemolo.


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