Stefano Domenicali, Ferrari team principal, has called on Felipe Massa to improve his consistency from race to race, if the Italian outfit are to challenge for the championship this, and next year.
The 46-year-old is in Madonna di Campiglio for the Wrooom Summer event and spoke about both his drivers to the media.
He stressed that he has total confidence in the Brazilian driver, despite the barrage of criticism which has come Massa’s way of late.
“I have seen that he was clearly on the up in the last three races and I am sure he will do very well in the second part of the year,” said Domenicali, noting in particular how Massa outqualified Fernando Alonso in Hungary last weekend.
“Felipe has to stay calm and make the most of his talents, of which there are many: he is a very quick driver over a single lap, but maybe he needs to improve a bit in terms of his consistency in the races.
“It is definitely not easy being paired with someone like Fernando, but that should be a motivation for him not an excuse. For us, it is vital for Felipe to be on top of his game, given that for at least another year and a half, he is one of our drivers.”
On the subject of Alonso, the Italian couldn’t praise the Spaniard enough, comparing him to Michael Schumacher, even going as far as saying he, as Flavio Briatore did, is better than the seven-time champion in some areas.
“I see a lot of similarities with Michael Schumacher, a driver who made his mark on our history,” he said. “In fact, in some areas Fernando is even better, for example when I think of the speed with which he integrated himself into the team and the way he became its leader. In this he was much quicker than Michael who took a while to do that,” concluded Domenicali.
Meanwhile, adding to his earlier comments about Lewis Hamilton, the team principal said he was pleased to hear that Hamilton hadn’t ruled out joining Ferrari in the future, though he said a move would be unlikely any time soon.
“I am pleased he [Hamilton] said never say never on the subject of Ferrari, in fact it is logical that everyone aspires to come to Maranello sooner or later, given what we represent in the history of this sport.
“Having said that, I don’t think the question will arise, neither in the short nor in the long term. For the Ferrari of the future, I believe the right combination is to have one well established driver with great experience, alongside a talented youngster on the way up. I do not think that, with the pressure we are under, we can consider having two youngsters in the team at the same time.”
