Luca Di Montezemolo Leaves Ferrari
The last several months haven't exactly been calm at Ferrari. Not only is the team's Formula 1 season in serious jeopardy, but it would seem that there were some pretty heated arguments going on in the administrative office too.
A few days ago, Luca Di Montezemolo, CEO of Ferrari, announced that he would stay at the helm of the company for at least a few years. This morning however, the news was quite different: the 67 year-old Italian officially gave up his position, handing over the reins to Fiat's CEO, Sergio Marchionne.
Di Montezemolo had a rich history with the Italian brand, having started as the Scuderia's F1 team manager in the seventies. 23 years ago he became president of the whole brand, and helped Ferrari climb back to the top of its former glory, in Formula 1 as well as on a corporate level. For example he approved the creation of the Ferrari Enzo, and he chose Michael Schumacher as his main driver, seeing potential in the young German.
Di Montezemolo stated that Fiat was too Americanized, and that he and Marchionne had different opinions about the direction that Ferrari should take in the coming years.