quoteTechnical director James Allison explains to Ferrari fans, “In Monaco, we continued to analyse the areas in which the F14 T can be improved and now, we are looking ahead to the next race in Canada, where the package we will use there is a good step faster than the car we raced last weekend.”
One would hope this to be the case because the F1 circus jumps from the slowest circuit on the calendar to one of the quickest in Montreal, which requires a completely different aero package.
Yet Allison reveals he is far from confident Ferrari will be making a step ahead of their competition this weekend. “While our development programme has progressed well in recent weeks, it is hard to predict exactly what this will mean for the competitiveness of the F14-T, as we do not know what steps our competitors plan to bring to Montreal. So any improvement has to be seen in relative terms, hoping that the track will deliver an answer worthy of all the efforts we have made so far.”
Whether Ferrari indeed have an upgrade or just the modified low-medium downforce aero package as usual for this event is unclear from Allison’s comments.
Allison also reveals that the re-structruing within Ferrari is well under way, though he fails to mention or give any credit for this to Marco Mattiiacci. “We must be able to make the most of the creativity and originality of our engineers,” Allison continues. “We know there is no magic wand, but there is a wealth of talent at Ferrari and we are working on an implementation and an approach to the work which allows it to emerge.”
Yet isn’t that the point? Mattiacci – master organiser of men and motoring corporations is supposed to be finding the hidden key to unlock Ferrari’s latent potential?
He is the one to whom the ‘staff of leadership’ (magic wand… if you like) has been presented by Il Padrino, and it is Mattiacci who must lead the men in red from out of the desert.
Surely we are not going to get another weekend of “Marco is still learning about F1” … kind of statements… in various guises… from various Ferrari players?
It feels at present like Ferrari are groping deeper and deeper into the darkness, with no light at the end of the tunnel -and not a wind one…. might I add.
Quote: WHATEVER wrote in post #604http://www1.skysports.com/f1/news/12474/9337402/james-allison-says-kimi-raikkonen-is-simply-driving-slower-than-fernando-alonso
I don't think this comment is entirely fair either James
We desperately need Kimi to start Kicking the Spaniard's butt
i was discussing this with miezi...is it new or just old comments presented in a different way? because if its new, that was it James!!!
Actually when he said "The problems Kimi has with the car under braking, downshifting, are the same as Fernando..." he's already implying that Kimi couldn't get on top of the car, and he also said Alonso had edge over Kimi....
Maybe he's just saying what he think.... but the media can always make it sounds more dramatic. I guess Kimi probably doesn't care, but it's always the fans who suffer the most...
Ferrari arrived in Montreal full of optimism, thanks to the long awaited new package announced one month ago by Montezemolo in Bahrain. The much acclaimed comeback did not occur, with Ferrari seemingly taking a step back although in reality the opponents have progressed faster than Ferrari.
Aerodynamic, chassis, power unit : these are the weakest point of he F14-T. A project that was developed badly and will continue to struggle to carve out a leading role in this season. The updates brought in Canada , proved to be unsuitable for the 059/3 cooling needs. This is a monumental error which occurred during the design of the 059/3, which clearly shows how Ferrari’s engine specialists and chassis engineers have not worked well together during the winter.
Ferrari new bodywork/sidepods design
This is affecting not only the engine performances but the whole car. Indeed the new bodywork and floor seemed to give the F14-T an acceptable performance level, but by putting at risk the power unit’s reliability, once temperatures rose up . The sector times chart above, clearly show the very poor traction (3rd sector times), this lack of traction is reflected in lap times, bad tire management and the inability to overtake (striking difference in traction between the Williams and Ferrari during the race out of the hairpin ). It’s pointless suggesting that the track was not ideal for the Ferrari. Red Bull proved otherwise by winning the race with Ricciardo and Vettel finishing in third place, this with an RB10 that is well known to be lacking top speed.
quoteMattiacci: We are very angry with ourselves 10 June, 2014
Although Fernando Alonso did finish sixth in the Canadian Grand Prix, Ferrari under performed dismally in Montreal and if it were not for the three retirements ahead of them on the day the Maranello outfit would have been lucky to take home a couple of points, a scenario which newly team boss Marco Mattiacci admits irks them.
Speaking after an incident packed race on the Ile Notre Dame, Mattiacci said, “We are very angry with ourselves, but we have no intention of giving up. The Canadian circuit definitely didn’t suit us, given that it highlighted the strong points of some of our competitors and, on top of that, not everything went right either, given that we started from too far back and the others improved more than we did.”
“On the positive side of this weekend, everyone wants to fight back, starting with our drivers, Kimi and Fernando, who are both extremely tenacious guys, competent and competitive and they know how to work as a team to point us in the direction of the areas that are a priority in our development programme. Some updates produced good results on track and that’s why we will continue down this path race by race.”
“We have improved since the start of the year, but every step forward we make must be looked at in the context of what our rivals have done. Ferrari has begun work on a specific approach, based around a few key figures; President Montezemolo, James Allison, Fernando Alonso, Kimi Raikkonen and a group of highly talented engineers.”
“It’s a case of restructuring the team, with people being given the best possible conditions in which to get the job done,” insisted the Italian who was drafted into the Ferrari hot seat in April.
“There is a clearly defined development programme that we are working through and which will see us bring updates to every race. Another major target is to speed up our reaction time, which is something our competitors seem to manage to do,” added Mattiacci.
According to Mundo Deportivo of Spain, Ferrari has already started their 2015 car, which they call "the beast" since the code number for the project seems to be 666
They are even planing to make a brand new engine, which they are allowed to change up to an 80% of it. James Allison has been at Maranello lately to see this.
Meanwhile Montezemolo is implying Ferrari will switch from F1 to Le Mans in 2020 since F1 is no longer the show it should be.
quoteOutside the choir [Ferrari Mattiacci] June 16, 2015 - Resuming consideration of Guido Schittone on the comparison between Massa and Raikkonen at Ferrari Ferrari-yesterday-today ("Ethics of impropriety" - "what Kimi is doing in this league with an uncompetitive car, corresponds to the results obtained last year by Felipe in the same condition of the car "- together we complete a journalist deepening on the crisis in which he Ferrari struggles.
Guido Schittone, why so many difficulties in adapting Raikkonen compared to Alonso about this F14 T? Situation reminiscent of the difference in performance between teammates last year ... "Raikkonen is a driver of another planet compared to Massa. The Finn is much stronger than the Brazilian and technology in a Formula 1 car and so difficult to manage at the feeling level as the current one, a driver of that natural talent as Raikkonen may have more problems. "
Kimi Raikkonen is a fast driver, very sensitive, instinctive, but lately also unlucky? "Many of the things that are not working in Raikkonen also depend on a percentage of bad luck. A Monte Carlo Kimi was having a monster race, better than Alonso and was not the fault of the driver of the Ferrari for the collision suffered by Marussia Max Chilton before the chicane. While in Canada Kimi spun, but in fact he had already raised the white flag being behind Alonso, as the performance were quite similar to those of his teammate. Alonso is much better in the race than the Finnish because it is 'tactical animal' who can read with clarity situations that occur during the race, while Raikkonen is just more 'instinct animal' and very sensitive. "
As Alonso has been able to adapt better to the new car from Maranello, the Ferrari race looks increasingly uphill for the Spaniard ... "Ferrari is a team in trouble. Since the coming of Fernando Alonso, Ferrari is in fact controlled by him, and so it is understandable that those who are put at ease first is just the first driver, that is the Spanish. And is 'well known that Raikkonen arrived in Maranello with the role of squire Fernando and therefore suffers psychologically environmental, demonstrating greater difficulty in the management of certain conditions of the car that still has not digested, as the approach with the braking, for example, which as we know, suffers from a strong electronic component cooling. "
Kimi Raikkonen: Marco Mattiacci good for Ferrari F1 team By Ben Anderson Monday, June 30th 2014, 10:32 GMT
Kimi Raikkonen is encouraged by new Ferrari Formula 1 team boss Marco Mattiacci's approach to turning the Scuderia's ailing fortunes around.
Mattiacci took over from outgoing team principal Stefano Domenicali in April, and insisted after the recent Austrian Grand Prix that Ferrari has a recovery plan in place to improve its disappointing form.
Finn Raikkonen, who is struggling with his own issues with the handling of Ferrari's F14 T, reckons the work Mattiacci has done since he arrived is cause for optimism within the team.
"Everybody has their own way of doing things - it's very early days for Marco, and when he started he didn't have as much knowledge as Stefano of F1, but he's a very nice guy and he wants to really make a difference and know the sport," Raikkonen said during the Austrian Grand Prix weekend.
"Those are good signs. He's doing a lot of work that people don't see and I think he's doing a very good job.
"He's a good guy to work with; he's just a different person from Stefano.
"I had a pretty close relationship with Stefano but it's just a change for all of us, and I think sometimes that's a good thing.
"People come from outside of F1 with a different view of things and it can help.
"It's been good so far and I'm expecting he can do a very good job."