Former Ferrari boss Maurizio Arrivabene: Warning against Vasseur’s departure and Horner’s contract

These rumours just won’t go away; rumours that Ferrari’s leadership, comprising John Elkann (Chairman) and Benedetto Vigna (CEO), are considering replacing Fred Vasseur as team principal of the Grand Prix team.

Now someone has weighed in on the discussion who needs no explanation of the pressure a Ferrari team principal has to endure. Maurizio Arrivabene held this post from 2014 to 2019.

Arrivabene, who was born in Brescia and is now 69 years old, told colleagues at Italian broadcaster Sky: “At Ferrari, one man alone cannot change anything. Coming to Ferrari with all the titles Horner has won might perhaps be more of a disadvantage than an advantage, because it raises even greater expectations. On top of that, you have to start all over again from scratch.”

“Ferrari no longer has engineers of the calibre of Resta, Sassi, Cardile and Stella – they’re now working for other teams. Everything has to be rebuilt from scratch. Ferrari needs stability and a leader who can work freely. These two things can solve many problems. But it is not a single person, however successful he may be, who can solve the problems.”

“Is Vasseur the right man for the job? I don’t know whether he has a free hand or not. If he does, then some careful thought would be required. It is absolutely essential to give the team some peace and quiet now, and that’s not easy at Ferrari.”

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“When you join Ferrari’s racing department, you take on enormous pressure. You have to let the team get on with their work in peace. This year they’ve made significant progress, at least up until recently. It’s not all as simple as it looks. It’s not enough just to bring in the ‘big name’ who’s already won everything. As a fan and former Ferrari employee, I say – let’s not raise false expectations.”