Alex Fiorio challenges John Elkann: “Fix the team before telling drivers to be quiet. Ferrari faces fresh controversy as Alex Fiorio criticizes John Elkann.

Former driver Alex Fiorio responds to Elkann’s words about Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc, judging them out of place at a time when Ferrari is not living up to its own history John Elkann’s comments after the disastrous weekend in Brazil continue to spark debate. The Ferrari president, who had urged Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc to “talk less and drive more”, ignited strong reactions among fans and experts. Among the most forceful responses is that of Alex Fiorio, former driver and a well-known figure in Italian motorsport, who expressed his disagreement through a video published on his social media.

“Every driver, even the strongest, has been told ‘shut up and drive’ in a winning team,” Fiorio began. “But only someone leading a winning team, with a winning team principal and a winning car, can say that. This is not the case for Ferrari.”

The former driver then went further, stressing how John Elkann’s words arrived at a particularly unfortunate moment: “Right now it was not the time to say it. The president is not winning, the team is not winning, the team principal is not winning. Ferrari has not won for years. First the team must be fixed, then you can tell a driver to ‘shut up and push’.” His statements reflect a sentiment shared by many fans: Ferrari is experiencing an identity and performance crisis, and constant internal tremors are not helping. The impression is that Elkann wanted to call out the drivers in public to assert authority, but ended up highlighting the team’s weaknesses.

Cesare Fiorio’s final message is simple but sharp: before demanding silence and discipline from the drivers, Ferrari must become a team capable of winning again. Only then will certain words make sense.