Amid one of the weakest seasons Ferrari has seen with very little for Ferrari to celebrate, their star driver Charles Leclerc got the team their third podium with a third-place finish at last week’s Belgian Grand Prix before the summer break.
The finish has proved crucial for the Italian team, as it has allowed them to close the gap to rival Aston Martin to five points in the fight for third place in the Constructors’ Championship. Given this year’s form, it felt like a good weekend for them, so they celebrated it.
But seeing this, the former Ferrari chairman expressed disappointment, remarking that the situation felt like a betrayal.
Di Montezemolo criticizes Ferrari’s celebration of Leclerc’s P3 finish
Charles Leclerc finished third in the 2023 Belgian Grand Prix, after starting from pole position. He was unable to challenge for the victory after Max Verstappen, who started from sixth place due to a gearbox change penalty, took the lead early on and controlled the race from there.
Leclerc was happy with his third place finish, as it was his third podium of the season and it gave him and Ferrari a boost of confidence heading into the summer break. He said that he was pleased with the pace of the Ferrari car, but that they still had some work to do in terms of race pace and tyre management.
But this feeling wasn’t reciprocated by Di Montezemolo, Ex Ferrari chairman. According to him the celebration of win at Spa was a disgrace to Ferrari and its glory days and its showing how the once legendary has fallen. Luca di Montezemolo criticized the Italian outfit for celebrating their podium finish at Spa, citing that Enzo Ferrari would not have accepted such contentment.
Di Montezemolo believes that Ferrari’s current mindset of settling for less goes against the values of the team and Enzo Ferrari’s philosophy of striving for more. He furthermore expressed his wish that Ferrari remains a title contender, regardless of the outcome.
When was the last time Ferrari won the F1 championship?
Ferrari last won the F1 championship in 2008, with Kimi Räikkönen as their driver. Räikkönen won the Drivers’ Championship, while Ferrari won the Constructors’ Championship. This was Ferrari’s first championship since 2004 with legendary Michael Schumacher, and their 16th Drivers’ Championship overall.
In 2017, Ferrari were again in contention for the championship, with Sebastian Vettel as their driver. Vettel won four races that season, but he was unable to close the gap to Lewis Hamilton in the Mercedes, who won the Drivers’ Championship. Ferrari also finished second in the Constructors’ Championship, behind Mercedes.
Ferrari hopes to relive its glory days again with driver Charles Leclerc and this is made evident by the 3+2 contract recently signed between the team and him.
What do you think about the harsh comments made by the ex-Ferrari chairman? And do let us know if you think Ferrari can win another championship in the future in the comments section down below.
