Former Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo has launched a blistering assessment of the Scuderia's current state, telling Spanish outlet AS that the team has drifted far from title contention and is suffering from an unmistakable lack of leadership at the top.

Montezemolo, 79, who guided Ferrari through its dominant Michael Schumacher years and helped the team collect 19 combined drivers' and constructors' championships, said it is no longer just the absence of trophies that troubles him but how distant Ferrari now is from genuinely fighting for them. The team has gone without a drivers' title since Kimi Raikkonen claimed one in 2007.

"What I find hardest to accept, as a Ferrari fan, is that they're no longer there, not even close," Montezemolo said. "They need to reflect on why. The drivers aren't capable of reaching the final race with a chance of winning. This makes me sad."

He argued that success in Formula 1 demands both a well-run organisation and a commanding figure steering it, pointing to the structure that existed during his own tenure as an example of what Ferrari currently lacks. "In F1 you need a perfect organisation and a strong leader," he said. "Enzo Ferrari was the all-time great, but when I was there next to him, Jean Todt was emerging."

Montezemolo did not soften his outside view of the team's present setup. "Today, looking from the outside, I think there's a lack of leadership," he said. "It's glaring."

His remarks surfaced during the Azerbaijan Grand Prix weekend, a race that only reinforced Ferrari's struggles. George Russell claimed pole for Mercedes by more than eight tenths of a second, with Charles Leclerc slotting in second, while Lewis Hamilton could only manage sixth, over 1.3 seconds adrift of the pace-setting time.

The timing is particularly uncomfortable for team principal Fred Vasseur, who has increasingly found himself at the centre of speculation in the Italian press about his future. Former F1 drivers have recently suggested that Vasseur himself is not "the main problem" facing Ferrari, though they acknowledged that ultimate responsibility for underwhelming results tends to fall on whoever is in charge.

Adding to the pressure, Italian journalist Giorgio Terruzzi has reported that Vasseur has picked up the nickname "Napoleon" within Maranello, while Christian Horner's name has continued to circulate as a potential alternative to lead the team, further intensifying scrutiny on Ferrari's leadership structure amid its prolonged championship drought.

Source: GPblog

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