Former Ferrari chairman Sergio Marchionne dies aged 66. Sergio Marchionne, the former Chairman and CEO of Ferrari, has died in hospital at the age of 66.

Sergio Marchionne, the former Chairman and CEO of Ferrari, has died in hospital at the age of 66.

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) and Ferrari confirmed on Saturday that Marchionne would not be returning to work after suffering health complications following surgery in Zurich. By Wednesday FCA chairman John Elkann issued a statement saying Marchionne had passed away in hospital.

“Unfortunately, what we feared has come to pass. Sergio Marchionne, man and friend, is gone,” Elkann said. “I believe that the best way to honor his memory is to build on the legacy he left us, continuing to develop the human values of responsibility and openness of which he was the most ardent champion. My family and I will be forever grateful for what he has done. Our thoughts are with Manuela, and his sons Alessio and Tyler. I would ask again everyone to respect the privacy of Sergio’s family.”

Sergio Marchionne, who was also the Chairman and CEO of FCA, had been running Ferrari since taking over from Luca de Montezemolo in 2014. He was instrumental in the changes that have returned Ferrari to top level success in Formula One in recent years and was a vocal and influential figure in F1 politics.

As a trained lawyer and accountant, he joined Fiat in 2004 and was credited with the Italian carmaker’s impressive growth over the following years. On Saturday Ferrari confirmed that Elkann, the grandson of former Fiat boss Gianni Agnelli, would take over as chairman and former Philip Morris CEO Louis Camilleri was set to become Ferrari’s CEO.