Current Ferrari

Ferrari

FIA Entry: Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro
Drivers Car 5: Fernando Alonso
Car 6: Felipe Massa
Engine: Ferrari V8
Chairman: Luca di Montezemolo
Team Principal: Stefano Domenicali
Technical Director: Aldo Costa
Race Engineer Car 5: Andrea Stella
Race Engineer Car 6: Rob Smedley

Stats as of end 2010 Season

First Entered: 1950
Races Entered: 813
Race Wins: 215
Pole Positions: 205
Fastest Laps: 224
Driver World Championships: 15
Constructor World Championships: 16

Team History

Ferrari are the only team to have taken part in the F1 World Championship since it's inception in 1950. They are synonymous with F1 and, for many, the reason why they follow the sport. Ferrrai fans, or Tifosi, have clubs across the World and can be see supporting their beloved red cars from China to Brazil.

Pre-War

Enzo Ferrari founded Scuderia (Italian for Stable) Ferrari in 1929 as the race entrants for Alfa Romeo. In 1938 Alfa decided to create their own race team and Scuderia Ferrari became part of the Alfa Course team. Disagreeing with the decision Enzo Ferrari was dismissed. As part of his contract he wasn't allowed to enter motor sport under his own name for 4 years. Ferrari started to build his own car in 1939 but the start of WWII meant the Ferrari factory was used for other purposes

Before the World Championships

The first racing Ferrari was the Tipo 125 with a 12 cylinder 1.5 litre engine developed in 1947. This was the first car to bear the now legendary Ferrari name. In 1948 the 125 F1 was built with a supercharged version of the 12 cylinder engine which won 5 Grands Prix in 1949.

The 1950's

Ferrari missed the first race of the first World Championship season with their first entry being at Monaco with the 125 F1. The first V12 powered Ferrari appeared at the Belgian Grand Prix that year and Ascari finished 5th.

Ferrari's first F1 win came at the British Grand Prix in 1951 with the Tipo 375 in the hands of Froilan Gonzales. With F1 run to F2 regulations in 1952 and '53, causing the withdrawal of Alfa Romeo, Ferrari dominated and Alberto Ascari in the Tipo 500, with a 4 cylinder 2 litre engine, won the Drivers World Championship both years.

1954 saw the introduction of the 2.5 litre formula and Ferrari had new competition from Maserati, Lancia and Mercedes. The new Mercedes team were too strong and Ferrari could only manage two races wins.

Ferrari only won one race in 1955 and for 1956 used chassis bought from the now defunct Lancia team. With Mercedes withdrawal Fangio moved to Ferrari and duly won his 3rd consecutive championship. Still using the ageing Lancia chassis in in 1957 Ferrari failed to win a race. 1958 saw Mike Hawthorn win the Drivers Championship in the new 246 Dino, named after Enzo Ferrari's recently deceased son. Ferrari missed out to Vanwall in the inaugural year of the Constructors Championship.

1959 saw Tony Brooks, in the Top 246 just miss out on the Drivers Championship to Jack Brabham in a rear engined Cooper.

The 1960's

Slow to react the the obvious advantages of the rear engined cars Ferrari continued with the 246 in 1960 and only managed a single victory.

For 1961 engines sizes were limited to 1.5 litres and Ferrari entered their first rear engined car, the Tipo 156. Based on the previous years F2 car Phil Hill took the Drivers Championship and Ferrari their first Constructors title. With little development to the 156 Ferrari failed to win a race in 1962.

In a season dominated by Jim Clark and Lotus, John Surtees put Ferrari back in the winners circle in 1963 with a win Germany following the introduction of the "Aero" 156 semi-monocoque car. With 3 wins in 1964 Surtees won the Drivers titles by a single point from Graham Hill in the last race of the season and Ferrari took their 2nd constructors title.

Clark and Lotus dominated again in 1965 and Ferrari couldn't compete against the British Garagerists. The new 3 litre engine regulations for 1966 proved more successful and John Surtees won in Belgium and Mexico to take 2nd place in the Drivers Championship. The Tipo 312 didn't do well for Ferrari in 1967 with a highest position of 3rd. Jacky Ickx managed a single win for the Scuderia in 1968 at the French Grand Prix. Continuing with the 312 into 1969 Ferrari again had a barren year.

The 1970's

With Ickx back at Ferrari for 1970 and a with B spec version of the 312 Ferrari won four races, three for Ickx and one for young Swiss driver Clay Regazzoni, in his début year in F1. Ickx finished 2nd in the Drivers Championship to Jochen Rindt, F1's first posthumous World Champion, and Ferrari managed the same position in the constructors title race.

Ickx and Mario Andretti won races in 1971 but the season was dominated by Jackie Stewart and his Tyrrell car. Ickx won a single race in 1972 but, as the team continued with the 312B, they were outpaced but Lotus and Tyrrell in 1973.

A young Austrian driver by the name of Niki Lauda was partnered with Regazzoni for 1974 and the team regrouped under the leader ship of Luca di Montezemolo. Lauda won his first race, and Ferrari’s first win since 1972, in Spain. Lauda won again in Holland and Regazzoni in Germany to place Ferrari 2nd in the constructors championship.

Ferrari’s decision to sign Lauda was justified in 1975 as he won the Drivers with some ease, taking 5 race wins. Regazzoni also won the Italian Grand Prix and Ferrari won the Constructors title.

Lauda missed out on the drivers title by a single point to James Hunt in 1976. His season was "interrupted" by an horrific crash at the German Grand Prix at Nurburgring which nearly cost the Austrian his life. Astonishingly Lauda only missed two races but retired at the last race of the season believing the soaking conditions to dangerous to race in. Ferrari won the constructors title.

Lauda was Champion again in 1977 but left the team before the end of the season unhappy at the team's decision to run a 3rd car for Gilles Villeneuve at the Canadian Grand Prix.

For 1978 Ferrari paired Villeneuve alongside Argentine driver Carlos Reutemann. The 312T3, with it's flat 12 engine, wasn't ideal for the new "wing" car technology but Reutemann still managed 4 race wins and Villeneuve took a début win at his home race in Canada.

Reutemann was replaced by Jody Scheckter for 1979 and with the 312 now in T4 guise won the Driver Championship with 4 wins. Villeneuve contributed a further 3 races victories and Ferrari ran away with the Constructors title.

The 1980's

Struggling on with their flat 12 engine for 1980 Ferrari had a dreadful season with 5th place being the best the could manage. Scheckter retired from F1 at the end of 1980 and was replaced by French driver Didier Pironi.

Ferrari moved into a new era in 1981 and introduced a V6 turbo powered car. Although the engine produced plenty of power the 126CK chassis was not quite as good but, in Villeneuve’s hands, Ferrari took two races wins including Monaco, the first for a turbo car in the modern era.

1982 saw a new car designed by Harvey Posthelthwaite which gave their drivers a chassis which could match the engine. However it proved to be a tragic season with Villeneuve losing his life in qualifying at the Belgium Grand Prix and Pironi having an accident which would end his career during practice in Germany. Finishing the season with replacement drivers Patrick Tambay and Mario Andretti, Ferrari won the constructors title.

For 1983 Ferrari had an all French driver line up with Rene Arnoux joining Tambay. Tambay won one race and Arnoux 3 giving Ferrari a 2nd consecutive Constructors title. Michele Alboreto joined Arnoux at Ferrari for 1984 and managed a solitary win at the Belgian Grand Prix.

Arnoux was dismissed from the team after only 1 race in 1985 and was replaced by Swede Stefan Johansson. Alboreto was leading the Drivers championship at the half way point of the season but unreliability cost him the title as he failed to finish the last 5 races of the season.

Ferrari failed to win a race in 1986. For 1987 Gerhard Berger took Johansson's seat and and proved his worth by winning the last two races of the season. Berger won the Italian Grand Prix in 1988 and was the only driver, other than Prost and Senna in McLaren's, to win a race that year.

Nigel Mansell was singed to partner Berger in 1989 and won the opening race of the season. He won again in Hungary and Berger won in Portugal but the Ferrari cars were outclassed by the McLaren machines.

The 90's

1989 World Champion joined Mansell at Ferrari for 1990. Prost and Senna diced for the drivers title through to the Japanese Grand Prix where his hoped were ended when Senna drove into him as they braked for the first corner on the first lap.

Mansell Left Ferrari in 1991 to be replaced by Jean Alesi. Ferrari failed to win a race and Prost's criticism of the team resulted in him being replaced for the last race of the season by Gianni Morbidelli.

1992 to 1995 were lean times for Ferrari win only two wins, Berger in Germany 1994 and Alesi Canada 1995 before double World Champion Michael Schumacher joined the team from Benetton for 1996.

The Schumacher Era

Schumacher won 3 races for Ferrari in 1996 and in 1997 was joined by ex-Benetton engineers Rory Byrne and Ross Brawn. It proved to be an astonishingly successful partnership. Between 1997 and 2006, when Schumacher retired, they dominated the sport. From 149 races Schumacher won 63, took 51 poles, 43 fastest laps and 98 podiums. Schumacher won 5 five successive Drivers Titles between 2000 and 2004 and the team took the Constructors Title from 1999 to 2004.

During his time at Ferrari he was partnered by Eddie Irvine, '96 to '99, Rubens Barrichello, 2000 to 2005, and Felipe Massa for his final season. The period wasn't without controversy as Schumacher had a clause in his contract classifying him as Number 1 driver and on a number of occasions his team mates were required by the team to move aside and let Schumacher gain a higher place resulting in a change to the regulations by the FIA outlawing team orders.

Schumacher retired at the end of 2006 having placed 3rd and 2nd in the Driver title race to Fernando Alonso in 2005 and 2006.

From 2006

Kimi Raikkonen took on the task of filling Schumacher's place in the team for 2007 and duly won the Drivers Title and Ferrari the Constructors. 2008 saw Felipe Massa lose out on the title to Lewis Hamilton as Hamilton took the 5th place he needed two corners from the end of the last race of the season. Ferrrai had the consolation of the Constructors Championship.

Raikkonen and Massa raced together in 2009 and Raikkonen took a single win at the Belgian Grand Prix. Massa was injured in a freak accident at the Hungarian race and his place was taken by Luca Badoer and Giancarlo Fischella. The replacement drivers showed the short comings of the Ferrari 056 chassis and were some distance behind Raikkonen in the races they competed in.

Double World Champion Fernando Alonso took Raikkonen's place for 2010 and, like Mansell in 1989, won a place in the hearts of Ferrari supporters by winning his first race. With 5 wins through the season, including Ferrari’s home race in Italy, he was challenging for the title through to the final round but could only manage 7th in Abu Dhabi losing out on the title to Sebastien Vettel by 4 points.

2011 sees Ferrari continue with Alonso and Massa as their drivers and have named their car the F150th Italia to celebrate the 150th anniversary of Italy's foundation as a nation.
 
I think Vettel had his own close call with "pour encourager les autres'", when he clashed with Arrivabene. Sebastian received public scolding, but it cost ultimately Maurizio - a smoking man - his job. Alain was another head, who in 1991 said too much and paid the piper with loss of his own red seat.
 
The idea that the problem is easy to fix once they understand what it is sounds a little, well, presumptive.

What if it turns out to be a fundamental flaw in the entire design philosophy of the car?I can't see them sorting something like that out in a week or two.
 
Usually empirical development follows. You change one parameter, test, and then based on results either you move forward, or pull back, and try something else. With lid on development and no time between races, this methodology is however a dead end.
I am not sure whether two or three Ph.D. with very expensive computers and software will be enough to crack the nut while drinking a lot of coffee in between runs. The situation seems precarious, and unless mother luck decides to help, this might be another season of lost dreams, especially if problem is centered on flaw in basic car design; but then, how that could happen? Car was supposed to be evolution, not revolution...a reason why I am still hopeful it is solvable and soon enough to salvage this season. Pre season testing suggested it cannot be that bad.
 
I think people will be wondering how Ferrari who appeared to have the fastest car over winter , have somehow languished way behind Mercedes

Truth to be said they should have won Bahrain with Le Clerc. In Baku , Le Clerc looked like the man to beat until he threw it into the barriers but Barcelona has left them shell shocked that Mercedes were even further ahead

I guess the knives are out at Ferrari and unfortunately its always the team principal's head that is on the chopping block. The only one who managed to play the game well was Jean Todt who with Schumacher, Brawn and Byrne who managed to get the time they need to deliver

At Ferrari - there just is not enough time to deliver before someone starts shouting they are in crisis. it just that Ferrari don't seem to make the right decisions at the moment and Mercedes are punishing them at every moment

It won't be long before the Italian media start turning on Vettel if they have not already
 
Reports are surfacing that Ferrari's technical department is undergoing significant reorganization. If true, then it could be just confirmation of Brawn's theory, that red team slipped behind RBR into P3 on the grid in terms of having competitive car. Simone Resta might be coming back, however we know nothing if i) he is available, and ii) how much that will cost. There is however very little doubt, that Mattia needs support. Canada, he warned us already, will not yield any miracles.
 
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"For a straightforward comparison in Barcelona between test and race, we have done worse for one simple reason. We developed the car in the wrong direction. Because we had misjudged the weaknesses and limitations of our package,"Binotto told Auto Motor und Sport.
That is not what I would consider good news. The thing is, never-mind WCC, but even P2 might not be that much safe, as RBR is improving race by race.
 
Binotto needs help to manage the team technically, and administratively. Recently it was rumored that some changes were undertaken in that direction. Point however is, based on his feedback, fans of the team and drivers need to be very strong this season without grinding teeth much.
I don't think Binotto is in hot water with top brass yet, however how long that lovefest will continue remains to be seen. There could be more changes in the offing by the year end. I am not sure what will happen with Sebastian. He seems genuinely disillusioned with the car and its technology, just as he is not too impressed with FiA.
 
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Apparently Ferrari have lodged a "right to review" on Vettel's penalty .. Its means they think they have new evidence to help overturn the penalty
 
Apparently Ferrari have lodged a "right to review" on Vettel's penalty .. Its means they think they have new evidence to help overturn the penalty
I think what it really means is that if they appealed the decision, they could have been further penalized or penalized for another fraction. Therefore, they did not appeal to avoid further penalties and instead went "right to review" where they will not get further penalized. This appears to be more about legal trickery than anything else.

What new evidence could they have?
 
New recruits by Ferrari: (F1 tech.)

• Stephen Boyd (Liberty) as a strategy expert
• Maurizio Tomasselli (worked as a coordinator for chassis development at Toro Rosso)
• Hermann Wolche (Mercedes) will get a role inside the wind tunnel activities
• Francois Dejoyeaux (prev. worked at Renault in the engine centre in Viry-Charillon) will work at the engine department
• Nigel Rupert-Nuttling from Red Bull will join (correlation between the CFD-simulations and the track)

Sadly, due to nature of design of this generation of racing cars, and under light of comments by Binotto, I think the car needs complete redesign, and consequently this season is most likely over for the red team. Fight is effectively for P2 in WCC only, methinks.
 
Binotto is under fire that his openness perceived as self-incriminating (he talks too much). His admission of flawed car design, and mismanagement of drivers is under media criticism. Now we need to wait how much patience his boss will endure before string breaks.
On the other hand, can Ferrari afford to have revolving door and general instability in the front office? Perhaps some private counseling and PR education would calm things down.
 
Ah, you mean they should lie:shocked:
I haven't suggested anything of that kind. Binotto is under fire from segments of media. Between lying and admitting all is of course a third option, namely, don't talk too much, and sidestep damaging answers without committing a lie. Do not offer any information voluntarily you are not asked about. Some litigators or defense lawyers on this board could speak about this subject more expertly.
 
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I think what it really means is that if they appealed the decision, they could have been further penalized or penalized for another fraction. Therefore, they did not appeal to avoid further penalties and instead went "right to review" where they will not get further penalized. This appears to be more about legal trickery than anything else.

What new evidence could they have?

They had no new evidence. No review. Case closed, for better or for worse.
 
Frédéric Vasseur to Ferrari? He is not denying it. Tantalizing humor that would however potentially sideline Binotto. I'm not sure how that could work with both at the helm.

That Rihanna garbage is really rich coming from a team which engaged for years in every regulatory advantage over others they could get, blocking fair competition.
 
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