Meanwhile, Happy New Year everyone, for what good wishes are worth in these complicated times. This 2022 of the Great Revolutions seemed so distant and full of hopes: and instead here it is. A different era is opening up for motoring, under the aegis of a new President. Incidentally, the FIA’s Bin Sulayem it will be a little less ‘Italian’ in representation; let’s hope this doesn’t create any complications right now that we are back to having two races on the plan, apparently stable. Having said that, I believe that Mohammed and Stefano (Domenicali, of course) will have to work closely together to resolve various problems. First of all, the calendar, because the world health situation does not seem to me to have improved much. Then, in my humble opinion, we should redefine the roles between administrative power and commercial power (ie FIA and F1 Group, that is the heirs of Liberty Media). Because I remain of the idea that the referees, intended as people responsible for enforcing the rules, have recently lost credibility.
As for the outgoing President, I continue to hear rumors that he will be given to me on his imminent arrival in Maranello. Assuming that he would have a desk in the managerial building in via Abetone, I think he will be spoiled for choice. Benedetto “The Pruner” Vineyard, the new CEO, has made a lot of space in four months. I think many were misled by his professor’s glasses and professional past at Nintendo. They expected Super Mario, but Splatoon has arrived. These are always business decisions that I am glad not to enter. We therefore limit ourselves to recording the outgoing heads, always waiting for the incoming ones.
2022 is also the year of Great Expectations for Ferrari, understood as a Scuderia. I believe that no one has gone unnoticed by the obvious disconnect between the presidency and the management of the Sports Management; attitude evidenced by the presence of John Elkann – who had a family dinner that same evening – at my former newspaper’s Golden Helmets. In the company of Antonello Coletta, head of the GT program, creator of what Elkann himself defined as ‘an extraordinary season’, while avoiding commenting on the F1 season with the specialized press. Said out of the way, this is a situation that will need to be remedied by making the right decisions at the right time. The boys of the GeS need to feel the presence of the top management, after having warned it (sometimes too much) with Sergio Marchionne. I remember when we won in Australia in 2017, after a dry season, and a few lines of press release arrived from the presidency to be distributed to the media. Which started with “It was time!”.
So we are all waiting for the new car (it would not be a bad idea to baptize it SF75, given the anniversary of the company’s foundation), with the new combustion criterion for the thermal V6, the hybrid already installed on the Ventuno and a super-compact cooling system. We hope that the tone of the internal declarations will return to that of the end of 2020 (“This year we suffer, the next a little less, but in ’22 we are going to win”) and not that, much more nuanced, of the latest utterances.
At Ferrari, but not only, there are many who look to the year that has just begun with a mixture of expectations and trepidation. At the end of the season they will expire something like eleven contracts among the drivers, starting with that of Carlos Sainz who has two dry seasons, with no options. It is not surprising that this agreement will be renewed, given that it is a logical and productive choice, but that apparently the rider himself took time to decide. In other times, other of his colleagues would have signed a life contract in blood. As for Charles Leclerc, his heavily armored deal sees him in the red until 2024. Unless. Yes, because all contracts have exit clauses and at the time of verification – which usually takes place in the middle of the season – the team will need to be placed among the top three in the Constructors’ World Championship, to avoid discussions. But this shouldn’t be a goal either, but a guarantee; otherwise we forget it.
As for the extra-Maranello world, I happily won a bet with myself, taking five eurini from my wallet and putting them back in another compartment. I had bet that after the events of Yas Marina rumors would spread about Lewis Hamilton’s desire to retire and so it happened punctually. Not because I am Friar Indovino, but because I share the generation of the friar and I remember these speeches already at the time of Ayrton Senna. I don’t believe it, I will be delighted to be proved wrong and I will be even happier to see Lewis at the starting line, to renew the challenge with Verstappen and who knows who else. But I am also convinced that many of your colleagues today have hoped, or prayed, that the rumors were true …
Good luck for a great 2022. Stay strong.
#leaves #trotter #FormulaPassionit