Montezemolo: Binotto takes the fire

It is now clear that, despite an encouraging start to the season, Ferrari will not be able to win the World Championship this year either, and the last Scuderia driver to win the title will still be Kimi Raikkonen, who won the 2007 World Championship. succeeded.

Then the Maranello company was led by Luca di Montezemolo – the former Ferrari president turned 75 at the end of August, and in an interview with the French newspaper L’Équipe, he shared his thoughts on what is happening now with the Ferrari Formula 1 squad.

He was once very close to the Scuderia, while Ferrari’s current management, president John Elkann and chief executive Benedetto Vigna, prefer to stay in the background.

Di Montezemolo commented: “Formula 1 is a very special phenomenon. Being a good manager or marketing specialist is possible, but that is no guarantee of success in the highest category of motorsport.

It takes passion and total dedication. Your presence in the team should be felt day and night. To enforce it effectively, you need to be a highly skilled politician. You have to be strong and always make sure that the team entrusted to you is as united as possible.”

This season, Mattia Binotto, the head of the Italian team, which makes too many mistakes, has been criticized by many and there are already doubts about his suitability for the position. But the former Ferrari president spoke out in defense of Binotto, who started his career in the days of di Montezemolo.

When asked about the team’s many mistakes, he said: “So, we once made mistakes too, as they were and are being made in Mercedes and Red Bull Racing. But only the Scuderia is under constant press scrutiny. Ferrari forgives nothing because it is a Ferrari.

Mattia Binotto is quite a smart person, so he always protects his team. He takes up fire for his people. Errors must be addressed, after which they must be corrected. Binotto is a great technical leader, but to lead Ferrari’s racing division, other qualities are needed.

Do I need to change the team leader? Who am I to say this. Ferrari is a kind of national symbol, like the flag of Italy. In 1993, before inviting Jean Todt to Maranello, I thought long and hard about this appointment. There was a real circus in the press then. But now if I were to select a new candidate for the position of head of the Scuderia, I would look for him outside of Formula 1 again.

But if we only focus on what Red Bull Racing or Mercedes are doing, we will not be able to solve the problem. The team must, as it were, rediscover itself, its development must be given a new dynamic. Maranello built an excellent, very fast car, but championship titles are not achieved alone. Formula 1 is a team sport.”