Jedan zanimljiv intervju uoči početka sezone sa Binottom!
Why are you optimistic?
"We have a team that season after season has proven to grow. Because every year we learn even from the mistakes. And this process is leading us to have a better and better single-seater."
And why are you worried?
"I think the team to beat is still Mercedes. We are a young group, we know our objectives but we will have to show that we are united in the difficulties. I don't know if it's really a concern, but we have to make sure that we keep it tight."
Mercedes: are we at the usual level?
"Yes, they have a consolidated group, they know how to build a fast car, they have financial resources, they have the skills.
And if they should encounter initial difficulties, they will overcome them."
Red Bull: growing too?
"Strong. Honda has grown and proved to be reliable even with Toro Rosso."
Is it possible to talk about a strong point of the SF90?
"It has an important aerodynamic stability, it is predictable and constant at medium and high speeds, with lateral wind, in corners and straights.
It's something we've been looking for because it was one of the difficulties with last season's car."
And how did you find it?
"With the feedback between the wind tunnel and the track. We went into the simulations to bring out problems and get a better correlation of the data."
Do Vettel and Leclerc require different working methods?
"No, our commitment is to give them an identical product. The approach is different: Charles is an investment for us. He spends a lot of time with engineers to make the best progress. It's also a matter of language, he has to acquire the vocabulary needed to communicate because you can also be sensitive, but then you have to know how to explain the car.”
You often hear "Binotto is a technician, he's not a politician". Is that true?
"Binotto is a poor technician (laughs). Jokes aside, I'm not particularly good at designing, but an engineer with a good understanding of the physical rather than the mechanical phenomenon. I think that over the years, my strength has been in managing a group. Whether the subject is technical or political, it doesn't matter how you organize a team, how you do it, or why. More than anything else, I feel like a person who can help others to do their job well.”
Enzo Ferrari would say "a man's agitator."
"No, I’m more a paternal figure. I almost feel like a tutor.
To what extent at the end of 2018 were you close to leaving Ferrari? And to go where?
"I thought I was no longer in a position to do my job well, and I made it known. And that this was not only a difficulty for me but also for the whole group because if a technical director doesn't work at his best, everything is reflected on those he coordinates. Yes, it's true: other teams have looked for me because my experience has value in F1".
No names?
"But no, I've been a Ferrari fan since I was a child. I've never thought of a team other than Ferrari.”
What were the problems between you and Maurizio Arrivabene?
"Working here for 25 years, I was lucky enough to live glorious moments with Todt, Brawn and Schumacher. And then with Stefano Domenicali. I have always learned from everyone, including Maurizio, and for this I thank him. My personal relationship has always been good. Never a quarrel. The difficulties concerned the vision, the management of the group or a race weekend. We had different points of view."
What teaching left you Sergio Marchionne?
"Don't set yourself limits. Give us the goal of reaching the impossible. It was his constant motivation, trying to do something that remains in the history, personal or of this sport. Sometimes it stimulated us in a "violent" way, but it worked".
Violent?
"Maybe he'd say, "That's it? These are str..., you have to do triple.”
Were you surprised when Marchionne promoted you to technical director?
"Yes, it was a completely unexpected step. He had already promoted me to head of engines in 2014 but I think that with his second appointment he wanted to break the mould, not only here at Ferrari but in F1. He chose a technical director who never designed a car. It was a bet that has to do with this horizontal organization, with which we continue to work".
Can you explain this "horizontality" better?
"As a manager you can no longer go into detail and automatically make people responsible. It's not Binotto's car, it's everyone's: the chassis maker, the painter, the motorist... collaborators become protagonists".
Was the appointment to team principal a surprise or an objective achieved?
"Neither of these things. That I could become a team principal was also discussed with Arrivabene. The appointment was the company's choice. And I'm grateful to Ferrari for their trust and esteem."
From intern to team number one, it's a good story. Also for young people.
"Yes, especially for my collaborators who consider me one of them and maybe this is my strength. For some I'm still their intern, for others I'm a young track engineer."
It's your first time too: where are the most important difficulties and the most intense pleasure?
"The hardest thing is to concentrate on today but also on the day after tomorrow, to organize a structure ready for the rules of 2021. It means taking time for the whole group to look further. What I enjoy most is having the reins of this game in my hands while being aware that it is my collaborators who can make the difference."
If you could choose a driver from the past, who would you hire?
"Schumacher. Before I even put him in the car, I'd put him in the team. Because he's a leader."
Is that adventure there unrepeatable?
"No, and Mercedes is proving it. Our goal is to move the ball across the field: we're not here to win a season, we're here to open a cycle."
Do Hamilton and Schumacher look alike?
"No, they are two opposing people. In personality, in talent and even in the way of driving, in everything".
Do you feel responsible for welcoming his son Mick into the Academy?
"It's just a great pleasure, it fills us with joy to have him. But let's not rush him and avoid comparisons."
Who should win first: Inter or Ferrari?
“Ferrari”
We fight together.
We win together. We lose together. Forza Ferrari
