Massimo Rivola has run the Ferrari Driver Academy from 2016 to 2018, succeeding Luca Baldisserri in the role, and in that time he has overseen Charles Leclerc’s progression to a race seat with the Maranello team. Prior to that, he was Ferrari’s sporting director, which followed a spell as team manager at Toro Rosso. Rivola, who joined the Aprilia MotoGP squad, comments on Scuderia Ferrari and Charles Leclerc’s prospects ahead of his first Formula 1 season alongside the Maranello team:
“There will be a fight between Ferrari and Mercedes again, the pendulum can swing back and forth like 2018, depending on the track characteristics. I think Ferrari had all the cards in hand last season to become world champions. But Mercedes has two advantages: First, this team has absolutely nothing to prove, they can go completely relaxed into the title race. Second, they have a clear reference point, and that’s Lewis Hamilton. He is the man of the extraordinary, they must continue to rely on him. As for Ferrari, I firmly believe that they are building a victorious car.” – Massimo Rivola explained – “They also have a good driver Sebastian Vettel, who missed an opportunity in 2018 – “Charles is a precocious guy who is mentally very strong. Nobody can always win the first time. He is used to it from the junior series, to do just that with good cars. It will be interesting to see how he deals with it, if he does not succeed with Ferrari immediately. The pressure is huge, but I guess he can handle it. If Ferrari takes over a certain protective function, I see no problem.” – he added.
“Sebastian Vettel now has with Charles Leclerc a teammate who can theoretically destabilize the team. Everything will depend on Ferrari’s rules and how the first races unfold. I know Charles, he didn’t go to Ferrari to play the role of the butler.” – the ex-Ferrari F1 sporting director said.
When asked if the coming teammate situation could end up being similar to Fernando Alonso and Lewis Hamilton, the former top Ferrari engineer explained: “I predict that Ferrari will handle this situation wiser. Ron Dennis was clearly on the side of Hamilton, Alonso could not fully perform, the result was clear – Kimi Raikkonen became champion. Precisely because Ferrari has seen this up close, I assume that they will lead their drivers wiser.” – Massimo Rivola concluded.
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