2015 to be a year of reconstruction for Ferrari - Marchionne

Ferrari president Sergio Marchionne and team principal Maurizio Arrivabene has reiterated 2015 will become a year of reconstruction for the Scuderia, knowing that 2014 was 'a year to forget'.

Sergio Marchionne kicked off proceedings by saluting those present, stressing: “I will try not to talk about 2014 because it has been a year to forget. So instead let’s talk about the future; we will look towards 2015 with some optimism.” Replying to one of the first questions, Marchionne confirmed: “2015 will be a year of reconstruction. In the last few days we have made some sharp decisions on the make-up of the team and we know exactly who the key people are for development. We have taken away all the baggage of uncertainty which harmed the start of the work on the 2015 project.”

For his part, Maurizio Arrivabene said: “I bring experience that has matured in my last company, the fact of knowing how to motivate people and to get the best out of them. In the company I’ve seen plenty of will to get things done: I am here to give the people my trust and to streamline the team. We won’t get anywhere individually, we have to work as a group.”

The two leading men of Ferrari mentioned Vettel is taking a risk to move to Maranello as of 2015, although the team acknowledges it's a shared gamble, to 'reconstruct the team and make it grow'.

Marchione however was swift to repeat that there is no certainty of the team's 2015 performance, but all is being done to get there: “I can guarantee the team is putting in a phenomenal effort. We have people here who are giving their absolute best and they have my full support. The important thing for us now is to give them courage and all the resources necessary to move forward and make the Scuderia grow.”

The meeting ahead of Ferrari's traditional Christmas lunch was concluded with Arrivabene noting that something with Formula One itself is wrong.

“There is a problem over the appeal of the races,” said Arrivabene. “We must keep working to give people spectacle and emotions. We must work to bring Formula 1 closer to the fans, otherwise we risk ending up racing on our own in empty circuits. We must know how to get the most out of the tools used by the new generation, which is how to attract young people and create the chances for fans to interact more with the stars of our sport. The Thursday of a Grand Prix weekend could, for example, be better exploited.”