Ferrari in Costa Cutting

[TenEightyOne]

Ferrari's race at Catalunya wasn't what they'd hoped for. Massa suffered gearbox problems and cruised to a halt in a public and rare-for-2011 failure.

Alonso's finishing position looked okay on paper but that belies that shame and horror of Ferrari at seeing the leaders lap their man.

There are two traditional methods that Ferrari use to fix problems involving pride and performance; money and revenge. They've immediately announced that they're pouring resources into improvements in the car and that Chassis Design Chief Aldo Costa will be taking on new and unspecified duties elsewhere in the factory.

Quite right too, those canteen floors don't clean themselves.

The man replacing Aldo Costa will be Chris Fry, one time McLaren Chief Engineer, a man who knows a thing or two about building winners. He's also a man who knows that Enzo Ferrari's impatient grace still looms large in the corridors of Maranello - Fry's occupying the slot left by the sudden departure of Chris Dyer, the man who Ferrari rapidly identified as the reason for Alonso failing to win the 2010 championship.

Will we see a winning Ferrari soon? To quote Murray ''In F1 anything can happen, and it usually does''. Hmmm... wide-sweeping though that is it's hard to imagine it stretching to a Fezza win right now. The Monagasque race is, fittingly, a game of chance. As for the rest of the season, well... Chris Fry had better get his finger out or all that he, Costa and Dyer will be able to show the world is the shiniest parquet in the catering industry.

 

[Mike Rotch]

It's like closing the door once the horse has bolted. If the design is inherently 'midpack', and it seems to be, early-mid season changes/ innovations/ developments are unlikely to fix it.

 

[niky]

I would have kept him till the end of the year and hired Fry to help create the 2012 car.

At this point in time and development, it might be too late for Ferrari.

 

[prisonermonkeys]

So first of all, they get rid of Kimi Raikkonen. Then Chris Dyer is taken out. Now Aldo Costa falls on his sword (or, more likely, is pushed). Is this Ferrari's way of doing everything now?

 

[TenEightyOne]

'Inherently mid-pack' seems harsh, but probably accurate on consideration.

I agree that Ferrari should have redeveloped alongside the existing setup... it would be better to start from here than start from new.

EDIT: Simul-post with interludes

Yes, that's how Ferrari do business now. Win or die

 

[MitchZ06]

Too late? Ferrari can start developement of the 2012 car now and just try improvements for it on the current car.

 

[Mike Rotch]

Too late? Ferrari can start developement of the 2012 car now and just try improvements for it on the current car.

One would have to think that if Alonso comes out of Montreal 90-100 points behind Vettel in the Championship, it really is game over for 2011 for Ferrari.

Unfortunately, they just dont seem to have the design innovation of the Rory Byrne era and cant match it with Newey with the current crop of rival designers.

 

[LMSCorvetteGT2]

So first of all, they get rid of Kimi Raikkonen. Then Chris Dyer is taken out. Now Aldo Costa falls on his sword (or, more likely, is pushed). Is this Ferrari's way of doing everything now?

If Massa messes up in Monaco (due to obvious ferrari errors) and then gets replaced quickly afterwards...then yes that is exactly how Ferrari does everything. Full of pride and arrogance but never to blame only those who dont fufil their expectations the unrealistic ones. You know the ones where they think they're entitled to them but don't pour the effort (there is a reason why McLaren and RBR have been better than you) I mean Vettle and Webber would have stolen the show last year if it weren't for car failures and the angst between them and McLaren would have been right there if Hamilton had been patient in a few races. And we'd all be talking about a fourth or fifth place Alonso in the WDC. Ferrari missed a bullet last year that hit them this year and that hurt them bad in 09. Even 07 and 08 were good years but not the runaway car they had with MS as McLaren stuck to them like glue. Ferrari needs to look at themselves and just figure out how to fix the downward spiral. Really I think it's funny cause I love McLaren and like RBR 50 times more than Ferrari and I hope Merc GP or Renault/Lotus/Proton/every other car maker edges out in WCC and WDC over Ferrari.

 

[Hun200kmh]

Really I think it's funny cause I love McLaren and like RBR 50 times more than Ferrari and I hope Merc GP or Renault/Lotus/Proton/every other car maker edges out in WCC and WDC over Ferrari.

You should have started your post with this paragraph and add a "disclaimer" tag to it, lol

Now for a bit of non anti-Ferrari (nor anti-any other team) talk.

Ferrari performed a stunning uphill battle last year and dismiss it saying that IF it wasn't for RBR's car failures and angst between them , and Hamilton's lack of patience (loved this bit in your post ... really did ) is laughable. As you should know, there's no IF in motorsports, and what happened was Vettel was WDC, and Alonso was 2nd.

Moving on, 2011 season well underway and what do we see? Regarding Ferrari, we all thought last year's car was somewhat better than 2009's, but still it was no contender for RBR. Well, guess what ... this year's car is even worse (compared to the rest of the field). So, for the 3rd year in a row Ferrari doesn't have a good car, at least not at the level they think suitable for themselves. Ferrari does not conceive not being a title contender, and that's something I don't think is bad about them.

Now, Aldo Costa, is it fair to replace him? Has he done a good job? Is it his fault? This is what people should discuss, as people discussed about Sam Michael. But no, since we're talking Ferrari here, let's talk about something else.

The way I see it, it is evident that Ferrari needs to change something. But I don't feel I know enough to assess if it is Aldo Costa that needs to be changed, or if he has done a brilliant job and it is elsewhere that change is needed.

 

[TenEightyOne]

The way I see it, it is evident that Ferrari needs to change something. But I don't feel I know enough to assess if it is Aldo Costa that needs to be changed, or if he has done a brilliant job and it is elsewhere that change is needed.

I suppose the question boils down thus;

Did Aldo Costa (and the rest of SD's team) fulfil their potential?

If YES then their potential maximum isn't enough for the level that Ferrari aspire to in this season. Replace them.

If NO then Ferrari need to work out how to unlock that potential.

I guess that accurately speaking only Ferrari insiders know the answer...

 

[niky]

nice post

I quite agree about last season... Ferrari played an excellent job of catch-up when they needed to.

I think their gripe now is that they don't want to have to be playing catch-up. They want to be in-the-mix, at the moment... unfortunately... thatsnotgonnahappen.com . It will take a major change to bring them fully up to McLaren and Red Bull pace.

I wonder if this is a sign, though, that Ferrari isn't quite as powerful a team in this budget constrained era as they would be with their old budget... though I doubt you could call the actual budgets of the big boys (Ferrari, Red Bull, McLaren) constrained in any way...

 

[Ardius]

Ferrari becoming their late 80s/early 90s Italian selves again I see. Ho hum.

 

[The Outlaw]

You should have started your post with this paragraph and add a "disclaimer" tag to it, lol

Now for a bit of non anti-Ferrari (nor anti-any other team) talk.

Ferrari performed a stunning uphill battle last year and dismiss it saying that IF it wasn't for RBR's car failures and angst between them , and Hamilton's lack of patience (loved this bit in your post ... really did ) is laughable. As you should know, there's no IF in motorsports, and what happened was Vettel was WDC, and Alonso was 2nd.

Moving on, 2011 season well underway and what do we see? Regarding Ferrari, we all thought last year's car was somewhat better than 2009's, but still it was no contender for RBR. Well, guess what ... this year's car is even worse (compared to the rest of the field). So, for the 3rd year in a row Ferrari doesn't have a good car, at least not at the level they think suitable for themselves. Ferrari does not conceive not being a title contender, and that's something I don't think is bad about them.

Now, Aldo Costa, is it fair to replace him? Has he done a good job? Is it his fault? This is what people should discuss, as people discussed about Sam Michael. But no, since we're talking Ferrari here, let's talk about something else.

The way I see it, it is evident that Ferrari needs to change something. But I don't feel I know enough to assess if it is Aldo Costa that needs to be changed, or if he has done a brilliant job and it is elsewhere that change is needed.

Nice post, and thank you for saving me the time

 

[LMSCorvetteGT2]

You should have started your post with this paragraph and add a "disclaimer" tag to it, lol

Now for a bit of non anti-Ferrari (nor anti-any other team) talk.

Ferrari performed a stunning uphill battle last year and dismiss it saying that IF it wasn't for RBR's car failures and angst between them , and Hamilton's lack of patience (loved this bit in your post ... really did ) is laughable. As you should know, there's no IF in motorsports, and what happened was Vettel was WDC, and Alonso was 2nd.

Moving on, 2011 season well underway and what do we see? Regarding Ferrari, we all thought last year's car was somewhat better than 2009's, but still it was no contender for RBR. Well, guess what ... this year's car is even worse (compared to the rest of the field). So, for the 3rd year in a row Ferrari doesn't have a good car, at least not at the level they think suitable for themselves. Ferrari does not conceive not being a title contender, and that's something I don't think is bad about them.

Now, Aldo Costa, is it fair to replace him? Has he done a good job? Is it his fault? This is what people should discuss, as people discussed about Sam Michael. But no, since we're talking Ferrari here, let's talk about something else.

The way I see it, it is evident that Ferrari needs to change something. But I don't feel I know enough to assess if it is Aldo Costa that needs to be changed, or if he has done a brilliant job and it is elsewhere that change is needed.

I figured you say that overused cliche "there's no IF in motorsports" so you didn't fail to meet my expectations. Many ferrari fans and F1 fans in general are making big ifs thinking that an aero package now or midseason will be a game changer and help ferrari. To the main point though the truth is, RBR and McLaren are better and have a more uniform team them ferrari does. Ferrari is struggling and trying to make a quick fix for a longterm problem, if the car was an upper midpack then maybe the upgrades that will come can help them be winners. However, car upgrades most likely wont help them anymore than they would Williams Team. You have Merc GP and Renault that will give Ferrari trouble for the remainder of this season if they dont improve. Aldo Costa did nothing wrong, Newey/Horner just have a better designed car as well as Whitmarsh with McLaren. Also Vettle and Hamilton are better drivers (subjective yes) than Alonso but that's what happens when you give a great driver a great car. Oh and I will admit I do have bias toward Ferrari, but it is obvious that currently RBR and McLaren-Merc are steps ahead of Ferrari which is about even with Merc GP and Renault.

 

[TenEightyOne]

I think the Ferrari is easily improveable to the level of the RBR and the McLaren.

The problem is that those teams will have moved on by the time Ferrari gets there. Because no track is revisited in a season we never see any benchmark times through the season... Ferrari will progress but they need to accelerate that progression and outpace their rivals' improvement.

 

[Grand Prix]

Ferrari becoming their late 80s/early 90s Italian selves again I see. Ho hum.

Could be a good thing. Could see a return to Ferrari LM Prototypes. Gold wheels. Red-burgundy paint. White exhaust tips. Red Italian leather seats in a racing car.

 

[Hun200kmh]

I figured you say that overused cliche "there's no IF in motorsports" so you didn't fail to meet my expectations.

Yep, true that, I'm a trustworthy kind of guy. And, unlike Hamilton last year ... I also am, hum, patient. Also, and unlike Webber/Vettel, I have no angst towards you.

In fact, I think I'm the Alonso/Ferrari combo from last year. I just ... deliver.

 

[Ardius]

Could be a good thing. Could see a return to Ferrari LM Prototypes. Gold wheels. Red-burgundy paint. White exhaust tips. Red Italian leather seats in a racing car.

I do miss it so much:

Maybe Luca can demand V12 engines for 2013 instead of the inline-4 turbos.

 

[NFSCARBON1]

Ferrari becoming their late 80s/early 90s Italian selves again I see. Ho hum.

Who saved them that time? A two times world champion from Germany. Who looks most likely to win this years championship? The current world champion from Germany. If anyone can prise Vettel away from Red Bull it's Ferrari. And the sooner they do it the better

 

[TenEightyOne]

Who saved them that time? A two times world champion from Germany. Who looks most likely to win this years championship? The current world champion from Germany. If anyone can prise Vettel away from Red Bull it's Ferrari. And the sooner they do it the better

Interesting theory, but I don't think you're looking at the right German.

Personally I wouldn't be surprised to see Rosberg in that Ferrari, he's fast in a dog of car. Perfect

Only thing is... they might need a German saviour but they have to get over the problem that he won't be allowed to be #1 driver. That could be aproblem...

 

[Hollidog]

Interesting theory, but I don't think you're looking at the right German.

Personally I wouldn't be surprised to see Rosberg in that Ferrari, he's fast in a dog of car. Perfect

Only thing is... they might need a German saviour but they have to get over the problem that he won't be allowed to be #1 driver. That could be aproblem...

Although Schumacher didnt have it easy with Irvine.

 

[NFSCARBON1]

If the driver they get is better than Alonso, he'll show off and end his new contract (like at McLaren). TBH I'd rather have had Massa as number 1, but since his accident he hasn't been the same. Ferrari need a driver who can develop the car, and at the moment I fear they don't have one.

You may have a point regarding Rosberg, he's definately getting 110% out of the Mercedes. But bringing it back to my point, the car isn't developing like it should be and part of that has to be down to the driver not providing the feedback.

There are two more potential Ferrari drivers. Kubica (providing he comes back as good as before) and Petrov, who seems to be getting better all the time and would make a good no.2 driver.

 

[The Outlaw]

Ferrari need a driver who can develop the car, and at the moment I fear they don't have one.

Nonsense. Alonso is very good in this area (especially when the team is behind him) as well as finding the cars set-up (Hamilton would have been a bit lost had it not been for the setups he leeched from Alonso in 07).

 

[Ardius]

Who saved them that time? A two times world champion from Germany. Who looks most likely to win this years championship? The current world champion from Germany. If anyone can prise Vettel away from Red Bull it's Ferrari. And the sooner they do it the better

Er no, who saved them? A Brit, a Frenchman, a South African and a German actually. And thats when Ferrari became the boring drone.
I liked them better when they were the Italian team that could, even if they were very unstable and made questionable sackings every few races. They were kind of an underdog back then, they are becoming a front-running underdog now again.
Why would Vettel want to leave for Ferrari? As long as RBR have Newey, who would make that swap?

 

[SUPER NUMBBER]

Nonsense. Alonso is very good in this area (especially when the team is behind him) as well as finding the cars set-up

I think now it's a good time of the season to start doing that...

 

[Mike Rotch]

Also Vettle and Hamilton are better drivers (subjective yes) than Alonso but that's what happens when you give a great driver a great car.

Someone pass the

 

[Tesla]

Did anyone else see the thread title and think that it said "Ferrari in Cost Cutting" in an italian accent?

 

[Grand Prix]

Did anyone else see the thread title and think that it said "Ferrari in Cost Cutting" in an italian accent?

*Raises hand*

 

[Ardius]

Did anyone else see the thread title and think that it said "Ferrari in Cost Cutting" in an italian accent?