1
Fernando Alonso was not right for Ferrari because he was "demotivating" the great team. That is the claim of Luca di Montezemolo, who was still president of the Maranello marque when in late 2014 the wheels of Alonso's departure were already in motion.
"I had the feeling that Fernando had got it into his mind that he could never win with Ferrari," Montezemolo said, "and that if he was in a Mercedes he could win with one hand. This was very demotivating for everyone," the colourful 68-year-old, who was ousted by Sergio Marchionne and now leads the Italian airline Alitalia, told the forthcoming April issue of Motor Sport Magazine.
But Italian Montezemolo insists that Alonso's exit has nothing to do with his talent. "Let me be clear," he told the correspondent Mark Hughes during an interview in Rome. "I believe Alonso is probably the best driver in the world even today -- certainly on a Sunday."
"Maybe not in qualifying, where I think Hamilton and Vettel are maybe faster over one lap, but in the race he is unbelievable -- a machine. But we needed motivation and it made me think what we needed for the future," Montezemolo added.
He credits the great former Ferrari champion Michael Schumacher for helping to steer his protege Sebastian Vettel towards the red-coloured team. "I recalled that when I was trying to convince Michael to return with us after Felipe (Massa)'s injury in 2009 he was saying 'The guy you need for the future is Vettel'," said Montezemolo. (GMM)
Grand Prix of BelgiumLocal time
Grand Prix of BelgiumLocal time
Bahrain International Circuit - Winter testing
M. Verstappen
C. Sainz jr
C. Leclerc
Bahrain
Bahrain
Bahrain International Circuit
Bahrain
Bahrain International Circuit
Saudi Arabia
Jeddah Street Circuit
Australia
Albert Park
Japan
Circuit Suzuka
United States of America
Miami International Autodrome
Monaco
Monte Carlo
Canada
Gilles Villeneuve
Spain
Circuit de Catalunya
Austria
Red Bull Ring
United Kingdom
Silverstone
Hungary
Hungaroring
Belgium
Spa-Francorchamps
Netherlands
Circuit Zandvoort
Italy
Monza
Azerbaijan
Baku City Circuit
Singapore
Marina Bay Street Circuit
United States of America
Circuit of the Americas
Mexico
Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez
Brazil
Interlagos
United States of America
Las Vegas Street Circuit
United Arab Emirates
Yas Marina Circuit
184,595 comments on Aston Martin
78 members have this team as their favourite
Tweets about Fernando Alonso
483,776 comments on Ferrari 279 members have this team as their favourite Tweets about Ferrari
Replies (1)
Login to replyChrisDanger
Posts: 6
"I had the feeling that Fernando had got it into his mind that he could never win with Ferrari." Really? I have the feeling that a world champion will always believe he can win, even if the odds are low. Alonso certainly tried his best in his years at Ferrari. Maybe he got demotivated by only being able to put the upper-midfield car in 2nd place year after year.