Louis Camilleri, who recently took the helm of Ferrari following Sergio Marchionne’s untimely passing, has vowed to work with F1 to keep the iconic company in the sport beyond 2020.
In the past year, Formula 1’s ambitious plans to usher Grand Prix racing into a new era were met with a defensive stance by Marchionne who threatened to pull Ferrari out of F1 if its interests were no longer served.
Camilleri held his first press conference as Ferrari CEO yesterday in Monza, and expressed his confidence in the future of F1 while adopting a conciliatory tone that departed from his predecessor’s uncompromising approach.
“In terms of the basic principles, where the DNA of Formula 1 will remain, if it will be at the pinnacle of automotive technology and innovation, but races will be competitive and exciting, for the fans, then Formula 1 will continue to be viable,” Camilleri told Motorsport.com.
“Within those principles, I think everybody agrees. How you get there is something else.
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“There are obviously three components to it, the way I see it anyway.
“There’s the technical regulations, there’s the financial aspects and there’s the governance aspects. At one point, the three have to get together,” added the Italian executive.
“I’m confident – it’s in everybody’s interest to find an agreement that’s viable for everyone.
“Beyond that, honestly, I’m not prepared to say much because I have never, and will never negotiate through the media. I hope you understand that.”
While Camilleri admitted his management style deferred meaningfully from that of Marchionne, the 63-year-old insisted he shared many of the latter’s views when it comes to ensuring Ferrari’s success.
“Sergio and I clearly have very different styles, however I think we have the same ambition and we had a mutual respect,” he said.
“We clearly discussed the Ferrari business as well as the Philip Morris business many, many times.
“So, I miss him. And he clearly was an amazing individual. A huge brain, boundless energy, and very ambitious, as am I.”
Assessing the Scuderia’s current state of affairs, Camilleri said he not feel the need to intervene or initiate any changes given the team’s positive performance.
“Obviously the team has considerable momentum, I’m happy to follow their lead,” he said.
“It’s a team, as you mentioned, a great team. I don’t expect big changes. I have the ambition, like everybody else in the team, to win and continue winning.
“Clearly I have a great team principal and team under my team principal, but on the other side we have a great management team too.
“It is one of Ferrari’s strengths at all levels. Ferrari is a jewel, my job is to make sure it continues to shine on all aspects.”
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