Ferrari Formula One boss quits after 2022 season failure

Ferrari team principal Mattia Binotto is the latest casualty of the famed Italian team's ongoing failures in Formula One.

Ferrari has not been a consistent winner since the days when Michael Schumacher dominated grand prix racing and its 2022 season was mired by tactical mistakes, pit-stop blunders, and mechanical failures.

Ferrari started the year with the fastest car but was quickly overwhelmed by Red Bull Racing, as Max Verstappen stormed to a second consecutive drivers' championship and the 'Bulls' took the teams' title.

The only consolation for Ferrari and its worldwide legion of fans – called the Tifosi – was a runner-up result for Charles Leclerc in the drivers' title after nine pole positions, but only three wins.

“I think it is right to take this step at this time as hard as this decision has been for me,” Binotto said as he announced his departure on the official Ferrari website.

“With the regret that this entails, I have decided to conclude my collaboration with Ferrari.”

Binotto's likely replacement at Ferrari is Frederic Vasseur, the long-term boss at the Sauber team that currently races as Alfa Romeo – although that will change from 2024, returning to the Sauber name before becoming Audi in 2026 – using Ferrari engines and hybrid systems.

Ross Brawn, who was technical director at Ferrari during the Schumacher years before leading his then-Brawn team – now Mercedes-AMG – to the world title, has already ruled out a return to Ferrari despite retiring as managing director of motorsports at Formula One at the end of this year.

Binotto, 53, was with Ferrari for 28 years, rising from a test engineer to Chief Technical Officer in 2016 and then Team Principal in 2019.

He was widely regarded as a technical stand-out who lacked the charisma and tough edge to lead Ferrari, which is under constant pressure as Italy's national team in Formula One.

But he's not the first to depart after failing, as Ferrari has run through four bosses since 2008 following the departure of Frenchman Jean Todt to become the head of world motorsport, the FIA.

“I am leaving a company that I love, which I have been part of for 28 years, with the serenity that comes from the conviction that I have made every effort to achieve the objectives set,” Binotto said.