An old principle of economics says that if income does not compensate for expenses, it is quick to go bankrupt. There Ferrari today does not have capital problems in the financial sense, but human yes. Among those who have already left, voluntarily or not, who will leave and who, according to the press, have their suitcases in hand, it seems that GeS will soon be able to sublet half of the premises to needy families. In reality this is not quite the case and above all a distinction should be made between the various professional figures, between ‘operational’ and ‘non-operational’. The latter are always and in any case precious, but as Jean Todt once said to a press officer: “She doesn’t make the car go any faster”. And the other took note of it. Among the ‘non-ops’ there are those who had already decided to leave in January, perhaps because John Elkann demanded a commitment in the field that was at least adequate for his salary; and who, on the other hand, did not recognize themselves in the new project.
Vasseur and strategy
Who knows what Fred Vasseur was thinking when he told the press (of his country) that the exits are inevitable and concern people very close to the former TP Mattia Binotto. A communication gaffe that can only be explained in one way: Vasseur is intelligent, experienced and experienced, but he still hasn’t fully understood where he is working now. At Ferrari, words must be thought about and above all weighed. I’m going against the interests of the media, but it would be better for Fred to take an example from another of his compatriots, who held that role and didn’t tell journalists anything, after practice and races, that he wasn’t already in the FIA rankings. As for these ‘people’, each one has its own story. David Sanchez was in Maranello, from McLaren (round trip) when Binotto only dealt with engines. For a time, Sanchez ‘overlapped’ Dirk de Beer, a South African technician with the air of a professor on a trip, sandals over socks and a snack brought from home. If David really, perhaps under pressure, had been thinking about leaving for some time, it’s not clear how in GeS he didn’t tell anyone or anyone understood it. The fact is that an outgoing engineer shouldn’t have been present in the pits during testing and race 1, where, among other things, the team carried out aerodynamic tests that I would define as late. However, we owe him the famous phrase in the de-briefing of a bankruptcy French GP: “It’s not that the new fund did badly, it’s that the old one did too well”.
No one is essential, but…
Laurent Mekies was actually Mattia’s right arm. A discreet arm, however, a hard worker and smart enough not to get involved in technical matters, he who knows machines well especially from the point of view of compliance with the rules. I’ll be wrong, but I think Ferrari would do well to keep him, at least for a while. Enrico Cardile – another name made by the media – had aroused some distrust (or perhaps jealousy) by taking up office as aerodynamics manager, he who came from the road sector. But he was smart enough to endorse the SF70H project, the 2017 single-seater that he set the standard with horizontal and raised air intakes, even though he wasn’t entirely convinced, at first, of the validity of the solution proposed (by Sanchez). That car was almost perfect in terms of downforce and aerodynamic balance – the 2018 one a little less – and many of the people under discussion today had given birth to it. In Ferrari, however, there is still the cleaver culturetoday diplomatically called ‘spoiler system‘. But when Gigi Fraboni, engine manager on the track, during a Spanish dinner said to Binotto, then DT, ‘if you don’t like one, you take him out‘, it’s not like that joke cost him his job once Mattia became Team Principal. In short, individuals must be protected.
Alternatives or visual navigation?
One of two things: either in Maranello they have a list of people already confirmed to enter, as well as outgoing, or they are navigating on sight. And this is regrettable, Inzaghi would say, because he would confirm the many rumors of an internal disagreement between Vasseur (who perhaps many people would keep) and CEO Benedetto Vigna. Who knows the people of GeS above all from internal interviews and probably from what is reported to him, but he is not (and God forbid, given his role) an operative in the field. In short, it is not an easy situation, and he is struggling to understand why the situation has only now broken out in the hands of Vasseur. There would be a solution that everyone agrees on: showing up in Jeddah with a car that I won’t say is a winner, but capable of making a good impression even net of the penalties. Yes, of course, it’s the hardest way: but he would silence so many voices.
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