Ferrari team principal Mattia Binotto resigns after season of errors
The Ferrari team principal, Mattia Binotto, has resigned and will leave his post at the end of December. It is reported Binotto may be replaced by the current Alfa Romeo principal Fred Vasseur but Ferrari have only stated in their announcement that a new principal will be appointed in the new year.
Binotto’s position after four seasons as principal is believed to have become untenable after he lost the confidence of the Ferrari president, John Elkann, following a season where the team was left looking helpless and, on occasion, amateurish by a dominant Red Bull and Max Verstappen.
“With the regret that this entails, I have decided to conclude my collaboration with Ferrari,” said Binotto.
“I am leaving a company that I love, which I have been part of for 28 years, with the serenity that comes from the conviction that I have made every effort to achieve the objectives set. I leave a united and growing team. A strong team, ready, I’m sure, to achieve the highest goals, to which I wish all the best for the future. I think it is right to take this step at this time as hard as this decision has been for me.”
Binotto took on the post in 2019 but has failed to turn around the fortunes at Ferrari since then. The team have still not taken a constructors’ title since 2008 and a drivers’ championship since 2007. After a positive first year the 53year-old oversaw a disastrous season in 2020, when the car was seriously down on power, was a handful to drive and they finished sixth, their worst season since 1980 when they were 10th.
Much stock was placed in a resurgence under the new regulations imposed this year and initially Ferrari looked to have emerged as front-runners. Charles Leclerc won two of the opening three races in a car that was hugely competitive.
However, as the season progressed and Red Bull out-developed the Scuderia, the team were repeatedly found wanting with a series of failures in reliability, strategy and from the drivers Leclerc and Carlos Sainz.
Verstappen cantered to the title and Red Bull sealed the constructors’ crown with equal ease. Ferrari were out of the title fight almost by the midpoint of the season and although they finished second, were 205 points behind Red Bull.
Earlier this season at the Italian GP Elkann had defended Binotto but warned that his team must do better.
“We have great faith in Mattia Binotto and appreciate everything he and all our engineers have done,” he said. “But there is no doubt that the work in Maranello, in the garage, on the pit wall and at the wheel needs to improve.”
After Italy the team’s travails continued and they failed to genuinely challenge for a win. Several weeks ago rumours surfaced suggesting Binotto would be removed but they were dismissed by Ferrari and at the season finale in Abu Dhabi, Binotto insisted he still had the full backing of Elkann. However, Ferrari have now ended their relationship with Binotto, who has been a stalwart at the team for over 25 years.
Binotto studied mechanical engineering at university and specialised in cars and engines when taking a masters. He was offered the chance to join the Scuderia as a graduate in 1995 and worked through the ranks including during the period when the Scuderia returned six consecutive constructors’ titles. He was put in charge of the engine in 2015, his management crucial in improving its performance, kickstarting the team’s return as a competitive force. He took over as chief technical officer in 2016, and principal in 2019.
His task then was formidable, the team he inherited from Maurizio Arrivabene badly needed a reset. They had challenged for titles in 2017 and 2018 but both seasons were found wanting.
Binotto had wanted to forge an entirely new squad from the ground up as Jean Todt had done during Michael Schumacher’s huge success with the Scuderia. “I always say to my guys it’s more important to be Ferrari than winning,” Binotto said in 2021. “Because winning will be a simple consequence. If we are capable of being Ferrari and working well, the winning will be the consequence.” But the victories failed to materialise, being Ferrari was simply not enough and Binotto ran out of time.