From Luca di Montezemolo to Sergio Marchionne, Ferrari presidents traditionally conveyed a direct involvement in racing. Today, according to Leo Turrini, Frédéric Vasseur finds himself reporting to chief executive Benedetto Vigna and chairman John Elkann, two figures the veteran Italian journalist believes are far removed from the world of Formula 1. In Leo Turrini’s view, that creates a leadership vacuum above the Ferrari team principal, with 81-year-old Piero Ferrari now the only remaining family reference point.
When Frédéric Vasseur’s future is discussed, the focus usually falls on results, strategic mistakes and relationships with the drivers. Leo Turrini instead looks several floors higher, towards the offices where Ferrari’s most important decisions are made. In his assessment, the modern organisation lacks something previous Ferrari management structures possessed.
“It is absolutely clear. I don’t want to be nostalgic about Luca di Montezemolo, who for me was an extraordinary president. But I can tell you that, despite certainly having very different ideas in his approach to the subject, Sergio Marchionne was also a president who conveyed how much he cared.”
From Luca di Montezemolo to John Elkann
Luca di Montezemolo led Ferrari from 1991 until 2014, overseeing the reconstruction entrusted to Jean Todt and the Michael Schumacher era. Sergio Marchionne followed, serving as chairman until his death in July 2018. His approach to racing was very different and demanding to the point of excess, but he was visible at the circuit and spoke about Formula 1 personally.
John Elkann has held the Ferrari chairmanship since then, while Benedetto Vigna became chief executive in September 2021. A physicist by training, Benedetto Vigna arrived at Ferrari from STMicroelectronics. Questions surrounding Ferrari’s senior management have surfaced before, including wider debate over the responsibilities of John Elkann and Benedetto Vigna in Ferrari’s Formula 1 direction.
Leo Turrini believes the difference with previous eras is significant.
“Today we have John Elkann, who has a completely different style. So let’s be frank: when the country priest, aka Fred Vasseur, now approaching the end of his fourth year in that role, goes to speak with the company’s senior management, he finds Benedetto Vigna, the chief executive, very probably a genius at other things but someone who knows absolutely nothing about Formula 1, and John Elkann, who knows nothing about Formula 1 either.”
Frédéric Vasseur without an experienced F1 figure above him
It is an extremely severe judgement and should be understood for what it is: the opinion of someone who has followed Maranello for decades. However, the issue Leo Turrini raises concerns the structure surrounding any Ferrari team principal.
A Formula 1 team principal needs people above him who understand what is being requested when he asks for more time, additional investment or an engineer from a rival team. Without that kind of support, every major sporting decision risks becoming a negotiation with executives approaching the matter primarily from the perspective of a publicly listed company.
That becomes especially relevant while Ferrari continues reshaping its Formula 1 organisation. The team has already undergone significant changes under Frédéric Vasseur, including an extensive internal restructuring of Ferrari’s technical organisation.
Within the Ferrari family itself, Leo Turrini identifies only one remaining reference point, speaking about him with both affection and a degree of bitterness.
“So who are Fred Vasseur’s reference points? My friend Piero Ferrari is 81 years old.”
Piero Ferrari remains the direct link to Ferrari’s racing history
Piero Ferrari, the son of founder Enzo Ferrari and the company’s vice-chairman, remains the last direct connection with the sporting history of the Prancing Horse. But the responsibility for protecting and supporting the Formula 1 operation cannot simply be placed on his shoulders.
That leads to the larger question raised by Leo Turrini’s criticism. Whoever sits on the Ferrari pit wall in 2027, whether that is still Frédéric Vasseur or a successor, could potentially face the same structural challenge: operating beneath a chief executive focused on the demands of a major listed company and a chairman whose responsibilities extend well beyond Formula 1.
For John Elkann, those other areas include interests ranging from Stellantis to Juventus. Against that background, the question is whether simply changing the Ferrari team principal would actually address the deeper issue identified by Leo Turrini, or whether the structure above the Formula 1 team would remain the more fundamental concern.
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