The former Ferrari president speaks about the Maranello team’s current situation in Formula 1. We are referring to Luca Cordero di Montezemolo, who, despite the fact that he has been out of the most important motorsport series for many seasons, continues to follow the fortunes of the Prancing Horse with great affection. On several occasions, however, his criticisms of Ferrari’s management have not been lacking, as the 77-year-old Italian entrepreneur knows well what it means to bear the burden of the historic Italian team. During his presidency, Ferrari achieved its last Formula 1 world championship successes, namely the drivers’ title in 2007 with Kimi Raikkonen and the constructors’ title the following season thanks to Kimi Raikkonen and Felipe Massa.
Ferrari is currently in a period of transition. The learning curve undertaken in 2024 has provided a clear signal, though: the Maranello team is tired of losing and is doing everything to climb back to the top. This is certainly no easy task, as the competition is always very fierce, and any mistake can be fatal. In the just-concluded Formula 1 season, for instance, the main problem was related to car updates. Everyone in the paddock knows the story of the SF-24 single-seater: a car that started very well, with a solid foundation on which to build a rising championship.
And in part, it was so, until the disastrous aerodynamic update package introduced by the Maranello team’s engineers and technicians at the Circuit de Catalunya in the Spanish Grand Prix. A floor that destroyed the Italian side’s ambitions for success, as the technical department took at least six Grands Prix in order to understand and remedy the situation. So much time was lost, during which performances were not up to par for Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz, and consequently, neither were the results, leading to many valuable points lost against rivals McLaren. Part of the blame lies in the eagerness to anticipate timelines, where the working group did not realize the misleading context in which the aerodynamic upgrades were designed and then produced. For this reason, things will change in the next Formula 1 racing campaign.
There will be a different approach, focused on the careful study of innovations to bring to the track. The goal is to emulate McLaren’s approach, a team capable of implementing several innovations on the MCL38 and always hitting the mark. It is better to lose a few extra weeks but have the necessary certainties than to waste months and lose the proper working point of the car. This is the target that will be pursued in the 2025 Formula 1 championship, when at Maranello, besides Monegasque Charles Leclerc, the seven-time F1 world champion Sir Lewis Hamilton will also drive the Ferrari.
There has been much talk about the Briton and what he can bring from Mercedes after the golden era experienced at Brackley. A wealth of technical knowledge and insights will be contributed to the Scuderia. The know-how amassed by Lewis Hamilton will undoubtedly be very useful. Moreover, the talent and sensitivity of the English driver will guide the car’s development. The British driver is an absolute champion, the most successful one in the the most important category of motorsport. For this reason, his arrival in Italy cannot be described as merely a commercial operation.
Of course, the financial impact will also be significant; there is no point in hiding it. However, the phenomenon from Stevenage is joining the red team to help Ferrari erase that bothersome zero in the title column, which has been persistently present in the standings since 2008. Luca Cordero di Montezemolo, as mentioned. A man who began his Formula 1 journey as a close collaborator of Enzo the “Drake” Ferrari. His experience is undoubtedly immense, but this does not prevent him from commenting on Ferrari with a certain simplicity. The Italian businessman considers the presence of a competitive car for next year to be essential.
What seems more interesting, however, is his opinion on Lewis Hamilton. Despite being nearly 40 years old, Luca Cordero di Montezemolo is convinced that the Briton cares little about marketing. Lewis Hamilton will grip the Ferrari steering wheel with two aspirations: staying ahead of his Maranello teammate and winning his eighth Formula 1 world championship title. This is the goal he has had in mind for a long time, as surpassing Michael Schumacher’s record and, in one stroke, bringing Ferrari back to the top of the world would make him a motorsport legend even more than he already is in his long F1 career.
However, he will have to contend with a far-from-easy teammate. Charles Leclerc, too, fuels the same desire as the Englishman every single day of his life. Moreover, there are drivers like Max Verstappen, who truly outdid himself in 2024. This is Luca di Montezemolo’s view on the Dutchman’s phenomenal performance. A driver who can only be praised abundantly, given his talent and his innate ability to always impose himself on opponents, regardless of the performance of the car beneath him.
To conclude, the former Ferrari president also speaks about the FIA, particularly regarding on-track duels that are sensationalized with every single contact. This restrictive approach to racing battles does not sit well with the Italian, who mentions Gilles Villeneuve and Rene Arnoux in their epic clash at Dijon in the 1979 French Grand Prix. Such a scenario, if it happened today, would be unacceptable. “They’d throw them in jail nowadays,” comments Luca Cordero di Montezemolo, and he has his reasons. More rationality is needed because emotions, for instance, cannot simply be erased by sensors embedded in the asphalt to monitor track limits.
Formula 1 should not be a precision timepiece. There are aspects of racing that should remain as they are to keep the spirit of the category alive and intact. There is also a memory of Michael Schumacher, who is as vital to Luca Cordero di Montezemolo as the air he breathes every day of his life. Finally, the former Ferrari chairman wanted to share a few words about Flavio Briatore and his new adventure with Alpine. It is an excellent choice, as the former Renault team principal has already proven his capabilities in the past, performing literal miracles with Benetton, bringing a relatively unknown team to global prominence.
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