http://www.mtv3.fi/urheilu/f1/uutiset.shtml/arkistot/f1/2009/10/965589 From his interview with MTV3 at Suzuka. Only the most relevant bits are translated: - Very few actually know what has happened. There really arent that many. It is assumed that I have done something wrong because the contract was terminated. - There is one big reason why it ended and it has nothing to do with my driving or with my activities within the team or outside of it. It is a totally different reason. Is it related to Santander bank becoming a Ferrari sponsor and the banks desire to get Fernando Alonso as a driver? - That could be. There are no contracts in existence that cannot be terminated with money. That happens sometimes. It does not change my life in any way. My affairs are in a great shape. Hopefully well get a good alternative for next year and Im sure we will too. I have no worries about it at all.
I don't believe anyone truly thinks changing out Kimi for any driver will bring a championship...Drivers don't win championships, TEAMS do. I'd like to see the demographics and projections from Ferrari's marketing department. I'm sure they are looking at the income. The question again comes down to BUSSINESS...Who makes more for Ferrari?...Kimi with championship or Alonso with none? My guess is Alonso with none.
Uhh, you sure about that? Renault would not have won the WDC in '05 and '06 without Alonso. Ferrari would NOT have been nearly as successful without Schumacher. Drivers are just as important to the equation as the team is.
The team produces the car. If it's a great car they will win 15 out of 16 races or what ever the number is in a season. The car comes first and then the driver. JV was resented for becoming the WDC in a great car. The car was perceived to be better than his driving talent. Anybody with some talent can win in a great car or as the Captain would call it 'the unfair advantage'. It obviously helps if everyone is pulling in the same direction with a star driver but the car will make or break the title chances. CH
No question, but to think someone is going to drive the car fast enough to make a losing team a winning team is not realistic. If Ferrari were on the edge of winning the title, I might agree, but the team is in need of more then just a good driver.
The Scuderia might surprise you next season, they stopped development on this years car some time ago and are concentrating all efforts on next year.
Almost every major transition at Ferrari is smoothed over like it's no big deal. It seems pretty clear here that F decided to cut their losses with Kimi. He's just trying to spin it to try and protect himself for the next team willing to throw money at him. I'd be curious to know when he knew that he'd be axed? This contract negotiation isn't something that was happening over night.
he knew when they signed FA a long time ago, for 2011. Santander money just made the switch sooner rather than later..
Was that quote from the Captain or the (late great) Mark Donohue? I do know Marks book of the same name is a *great* read btw. Cheers, Ian
Yep. So it was Kimi or Massa exiting. I'm sure Kimi is shocked. Ice or no ice. He can either use this to come back strong and "show them" or it popped his balloon.
I'm sure Kimi is relieved and due to speculations stating that FA to Ferrari have been known since last July, I'm sure this is no surprise at all. Kimi just never fit in with the "passion" and "outgoing vibrant character" that is so important to Ferrari. He'll be magic again at a team like Mac.
+1 For some unknown reason Luca likes Massa a lot. Kimi for sure did something wrong but it may well be that he just does not talk much at Ferrari parties Being out scored by Masss last year certainly didn't help either.
I'm not sure why this is even controversial if people read the news clippings posted on sites like F1-Live, and usually repeated here. Ferrari has stated that they had no problem with their Kimi experience and were going to honor his contract through next year until the latest experiences at Renault, which made Alonso available for 2010. They clearly didn't want to take a chance of Alonso signing a multi-year contract with someone else. They have identified two differences between Alonso and Kimi, those of long term commitment to the sport, and leadership qualities, i.e. Kimi's poor communications skills, which are well known and posted about to no end on this forum. No hidden agendas are necessary for Ferrari to make the decisions it did. And, Kimi gets a nice payoff from Ferrari and a new contract with a top car for next year and hopefully makes a bundle. The fans even win. Being to compare Kimi with Hamilton in the same car (if that happens) and Alonso with Massa will be fun and exciting. As far as the importance of the driver vs the car go, the driver is important in helping to develop the car, set up the car, and stay in touch with what is happening with the car during the race, all over and above pure driving speed, both qualifying and racing. When a car has a clear advantage over its competitors, the driver skills are less critical, but crutial when the cars are closely matched. Just looked at result differences between team members when the drivering skills aren't equal, such as McLaren and Renault right now.
YES! Totally agree on the importance of the driver as a crucial part of the development process. All the best, Andrew.
Glad he is gone, compared to Massa he really hasnt showed much passion for the team or its supporters, yes he did bring a WDC but in reality he was out classed by Massa. Now to see how Alonso fits in.....