05/09/2005
NEWS STORY
 |
In recent months we've grown used to Jean Todt wearily facing a barrage of questions from journalists that can smell the blood of a wounded animal, a horse that is barely able to walk, far less prance.
Following his team's worst home performance many years, the first time that it has failed to score a single point at Monza since 1995, when at least Gerhard Berger had posted fastest lap, and had even led the race, as had teammate Jean Alesi, Todt looked thoroughly crestfallen as he sat down to the traditional post-race press conference, at this most traditional of race circuits.
It was clear from the outset that the Frenchman was in no mood for foolish questions. Asked if the race was as good or as bad as expected, he snapped back: "You are the expert of strange questions! What were we expecting?
"We were expecting better," he added, "we were expecting a lot better. And we are disappointed. We were expecting better.
"Unfortunately the best we could have hoped for was finishing seventh and eighth and for different reasons; Rubens had a puncture, therefore we lost this possibility, and Michael, by trying to get eighth position, finished tenth."
Asked how it feels to finally know that at least one of the titles, and realistically, both the titles, are lost, he replies: "We still… we never stop fighting. The day you stop fighting you do another job, but as long as we can we will fight.
"Every time, even if you don't see it in the lap times or the result, you learn something and by learning you improve the situation. It takes more time than we wish it would take and more time than we thought it would take, but we fight."
Luca di Montezemolo has said that he wants to see at least one more win for Ferrari in the last three races.
Todt looks to the heavens: "Tell me how I could commit to delivering that?"
"Bolt on some Michelins?" says a brave journalist at the back.
The Frenchman's face is like thunder: "First it would be very disrespectful to Bridgestone and very presumptuous to say we will change and it will happen.
"Number two, we are committed by contract to Bridgestone and we will honour our contract and we will trust Bridgestone until the end."
There's been much talk that Bridgestone might supply Williams and Toyota in 2006, would Ferrari work with them, in order to create a stronger future, or would it prefer to work (mostly) separately from other teams?
"I don't want to speculate who could be using Bridgestone tyres next year," he says, "but the more we can have synergy with teams to work on tyres the better it will be for us."
It's pointed out that di Montezemolo admitted on Saturday that grip is the main problem for Ferrari in 2005. Previously, Ferrari has been protective of Bridgestone. Is the Ferrari President's admission of where the problem lies, indicative of a change of mood within the team?
"OK," he sighs. "It's not the first time.
"We know we lack grip, and grip is mostly coming from the tyres. But you know, I don't know what would be the advantage of just pointing a gun towards one company or one individual.
"Those people that I mention every time, they have been so helpful, so supportive and we are talking about Ferrari winning, but we were winning because Bridgestone were supplying us with the best tyres.
"So at the moment one of the reasons - but again it would be very wrong to say it is the only reason - we don't succeed is probably because Bridgestone is not supplying us with the best tyres. So you have different ways of saying that, depending on your personality, depending on your belief, depending on all that, but at the end of the day, the conclusions come to be the same."
Turkey was difficult, Italy was difficult, therefore what does Ferrari expect at Spa in the dry?
"Difficult," he says, "what is difficult? Definitely, this year, for the first time for many, many years we did not score points here. The positive point is the reliability, because we have been reliable in Turkey.
"Here, unfortunately, we didn't score any points which is very painful. Let's say we are not expecting a miracle, to be in a much better situation in Spa. But then it may rain, because it does happen very often, but again, there have been so many races when it hasn't rained."
Asked if he believes the crowds have stayed away - attendance is understood to be down by 20% - is due to Ferrari's poor for this year, he shrugs, then replies: "It's probably part of it. I don't know. I don't have any evidence that it's the only reason, but probably part of it, yes."
"There's been a lot of talk and speculation recently about drivers for the future; do you see yourself being part of that future once Michael has left?" he's asked. "Do you see yourself staying on and perhaps facing a new challenge with new drivers?"
"Do you expect one answer tonight?" he replies, causing laughter amongst the assembled journalists.
"My contract with Ferrari is until the end of 2006, but as I've said very often, when I joined Ferrari in July 1993 it was until the end of '95 and then '98, 2001, 2004 and then 2006. So sooner or later we will, or we have already, speak about the future.
"Without talking about my contract I'm very much involved with Ferrari's continuity. I always said it's much easier for me because I know that I would have any kind of similar experience somewhere else but at Ferrari so I really hope that Ferrari will have among the best people as we have now for the continuity of Ferrari."
Based on the Monza performance, he's asked if Ferrari is better off or worse off when it pre-race tests with everybody else? Does it have an effect?
"It should be an advantage," he responds, "because very often we have made probably the most appropriate choice of tyres here, we did the best choice from what we had available and even, strangely enough, very often the track condition changes even if you test for four days and you come back two weeks later things might be different which is quite amazing. But for us and for all the others, it's probably better, but it's not as crucial as it could be."
The whole season has been up and down for Ferrari. There were good races like Imola then it was down a bit and then Hungary, which was another better race, but why now, at Monza, is the down so much down?
"Maybe the others have improved their package quite a lot," he replies, "which is a possibility. Though we definitely didn't move forward the way we would move forward by going with new solutions.
"You can see that with Jordan and Minardi, the gap to us is not as big as it has been sometimes and their choice of tyres is much more conservative because they use last year's compounds and constructions, which is not the case with us. Probably that just confirms that we are in a period of transition, where we are trying to learn with new processes.
"Was today a turning point," he's asked, "in that Michael's reign is over after five years?"
"Yes," he says, sighing. "Mathematically it has happened but the end of the reign does not mean that Michael isn't not one of, or amongst, the best drivers in the world today, and in history. But sure, even in the manufacturers' (championship) it is not yet over but next race it will be, or the one after. So we know it will come and we are not happy about that, but saying that, we have had so much success we must be fair. We would have never admitted, and I don't think anyone would have admitted, that we would have had so much success for so many years. But now the challenge, as I've said very often, is to come back where we like to be."
Bridgestone has been looking for the key since the beginning of the season, to find a good solution. Is Ferrari concerned that because they haven't found it yet, after such a long period, and that they possibly won't find it over the winter as well?
"Concerned, yes, we are concerned," he admits. "But I would prefer to answer this question at the end of the season. There is so much going on, that I still feel the possibility of finishing much stronger at the end of the season."
On Saturday, Ferrari announced a longer deal with Philip Morris (Marlboro). Todt is asked if he can explain exactly how the deal will work? Is it a renewal of the Marlboro deal, or will Philip Morris be able to sell sponsorship on the side of the car as part of its own separate deal?
"We have extended the contract with Philip Morris until the end of 2011," he replies. "Of course we know how the evolution of the tobacco rules are evolving in the European Community in the world, but we will always respect the rules. Notwithstanding that, they will remain partners with us until the end of 2011."
Will they be able to buy and sell sponsorship on the car as opposed to just putting Marlboro stickers on it? Will it purely be Marlboro until the end of 2011?
"When it's possible we will have branding on the cars," he explains, "if it's not possible we will not have it."
Asked how long Ferrari's contract with Bridgestone will run, he responds: "It's an ongoing contract."
He's asked if the Meeting (in Milan) last Wednesday was constructive, because Ferrari finally went to a meeting with the other teams..
"It was the others who came to a meeting with the FIA and Ferrari," he replies, drily. "Be precise, be precise.
"Yeah, he continues. "It was constructive for me, I'm much more concerned with fact so at the moment it's an ongoing process and I hope that this process will end up with facts, so let's say it was promising.
"How it will go, I don't know. I hope that for the benefit of the sport it will lead to some good conclusions for Formula One."
"After all the talking," says a journalist, "2007, Raikkonen and Rossi, I would like to have your opinion, because there's so much…
"You know, I'm very focused on what will happen in Spa," says Todt, cutting the journo off in his prime, "even if I said that I think it will be difficult.
"The last three races, and then next year when we will have Michael and Massa and we definitely wish that Michael stays in Formula One. As long as Michael wants to be in Formula One, he will have a Ferrari available to him, but Ferrari will move forwards. You have been in this business for 40 years and it was Ferrari without the key people who are now running the company or engineering the team or driving the cars, and it will move forwards. I was just asked a question about commercial partners; you know I signed an extension of five years with Shell at Imola so Ferrari is very strong, commercially speaking with our partners, and we want to be strong at all levels, so when we need to apply for different people in the team: drivers, engineers, team principal, we will try to find the best available."
And with that he's gone… anticipating another difficult race, and probably an equally difficult press debrief at Spa.
However, should it rain…