03/08/2013
NEWS STORY
 |
As speculation, much of it wild, over Fernando Alonso's future with Ferrari continues, Luca di Montezemolo has turned to the Italian media to clarify the situation, whilst sending out a clear warning to his team.
Earlier in the week, the Ferrari President's gentle rebuke for the Spaniard after criticising his car, led to a media storm. At a time when attention was focussed on who will partner Sebastian Vettel at Red Bull the comments from Montezemolo caused sections of the media to go into speculation overdrive, a situation not helped by the lack of real news over the summer break.
Clearly keen to settle the situation before it gets out of control, Flavio Briatore now having weighed into the debate, Montezemolo turned to Corriere della Sera to explain why he publicly criticised his driver.
"Fernando is a great driver and I understand him, he is a bit like me: he wants to win," he told Daniele Dallera. "He must just remember that one wins and loses together and for its part, Ferrari must give him a car capable of starting from the front two rows.
"It doesn't sit well with me seeing our car is not competitive," he continued. "That's why I intervened, even if I didn't want to abuse my authority over my men. However, it had to be done.
"Fernando has given a lot in these last years and I repeat, his disappointment, which came about mainly after Silverstone, where all of us expected to be more competitive, is understandable. But I didn't like some attitudes, a few words, some outbursts. And I said so... I reminded everyone, including the drivers, that Ferrari comes before everything, the priority is the team. Rather like a family father pointing out the need to respect some family rules: I wish to underline the concept of family values.
"We started so well, we had begun the world championship with a very competitive car, maybe even considered the best. But something happened and instead of moving forward we went backwards. Therefore the right attitude, the one I am taking from now on is as follows: understand the mistakes, fix them and after this careful analysis develop the car in the right direction. We must put our heads down in this return match, as I describe this second part of the season after the break, a break I don't like, but we have to adhere to it.
"Our DNA, Ferrari's and mine, has a characteristic that we never give up," he continued. "We must get back on the path we were on up until Barcelona. We can do it. Secondly, Spa and Monza are two circuits that could suit the characteristics of our car. Yes, the conditions are in place to give a strong signal of a recovery and, on top of that, I expect results from our engineers who must demonstrate their worth. Then, please, let's not forget that last year, at the last race, for a few laps, Alonso was the virtual world champion, at the wheel of a Ferrari and definitely no other car, which confirms this team knows how to be competitive."
Be it a rallying call or a final warning, Montezemolo then turned his attention to the rest of the team, demanding that everyone raise their game.
"Felipe is a quick driver and a great guy," he said, referring to the team's second driver, who has clearly dropped off following a strong start to the season. "But in the past days, we were very clear with him: both he and us need results and points. Then, at some point, we will look one another in the eye and decide what to do."
Then came the turn of team boss Stefano Domenicali.
"Stefano was born and raised with us from all managerial points of view. But as a sportsman, he knows he needs results. However, when one talks about Domenicali, one truth is king: under his management we have won one Constructors' title and come very close to three Drivers' titles. Two of those we could easily have won and then people's opinion of Domenicali would be very different. There's one thing I remind him of very often: he has to get the most out of every individual in his organisation, never be satisfied and if necessary, take some drastic and painful decisions."
Finally, just in case anyone had missed the point, Montezemolo summed up the situation with a chilling reminder that nobody is bigger than the team they work for.
"Let me make it clear that it's Ferrari I'm interested in," he warned. "Drivers, we've had a lot, some very good, some great, but drivers come and go, while Ferrari remains."