Ferrari's new team principal Marco Mattiacci faced the Formula 1 media for the first time today (Friday 18th April).
He was announced as Stefano Domenicali's replacement - following the Italian's resignation - on Monday, having previously worked as CEO of Ferrari North America.
2014 has been Ferrari's worst start to a season in five years, but Mattiacci believes it is too early to concede this year's world titles just yet. "I don't think we are going to give up," he told reporters at the Shanghai International Circuit.
"Our goal is to close as much as we can the gap to the leader, and at the moment that is Mercedes. All of you know racing better than me, and there are many variables that can influence a lap, a race or a championship.
"But this is the fourth race. It is still very early to take decisions, and our objective is to close the gap as quickly as possible to Mercedes. But it is not an easy task."
Some critics have suggested that he doesn't have enough Formula 1 knowledge to lead Ferrari, but he is determined to prove the doubters wrong.
"It is very motivating for me," he admitted. "I accept it because sometimes you can bring a new perspective when looking at issues and opportunities. The fact is I need to prove that I am at the level of Ferrari first and the level of Formula One, so you see in front of you an extremely motivated person.
"I love racing, I race myself in my spare time. I spend probably 20 or 22 weekends at the track last year and I attended the 24 hours of Daytona sleeping at the track and trying to learn as much as I could. It's not Formula One, but I love racing, I love continuous improvement, challenging a team to give a better car and get as much as we can from the track."
He promised to do "whatever is needed" to get the iconic outfit back to the front of the field. The Italian said he spent time with his predecessor Domenicali before Monday's announcement, having only been offered the role three days earlier.
"I received a call at 5:58am on Friday morning and the chairman Montezemolo was on the phone and told me ‘this is my idea’," he explained.
"I thought that April fool was already 15 days earlier so in the second or third minutes of the discussion I understood he was serious, and I understood that because there was already a ticket ready to go from New York to Milan in three hours. I arrived on Saturday morning in Maranello at the Fiorano track."
Fernando Alonso and Kimi Raikkonen shared their views on Thursday.
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| © Ferrari |
2014 has been Ferrari's worst start to a season in five years, but Mattiacci believes it is too early to concede this year's world titles just yet. "I don't think we are going to give up," he told reporters at the Shanghai International Circuit.
"Our goal is to close as much as we can the gap to the leader, and at the moment that is Mercedes. All of you know racing better than me, and there are many variables that can influence a lap, a race or a championship.
"But this is the fourth race. It is still very early to take decisions, and our objective is to close the gap as quickly as possible to Mercedes. But it is not an easy task."
Some critics have suggested that he doesn't have enough Formula 1 knowledge to lead Ferrari, but he is determined to prove the doubters wrong.
"It is very motivating for me," he admitted. "I accept it because sometimes you can bring a new perspective when looking at issues and opportunities. The fact is I need to prove that I am at the level of Ferrari first and the level of Formula One, so you see in front of you an extremely motivated person.
"I love racing, I race myself in my spare time. I spend probably 20 or 22 weekends at the track last year and I attended the 24 hours of Daytona sleeping at the track and trying to learn as much as I could. It's not Formula One, but I love racing, I love continuous improvement, challenging a team to give a better car and get as much as we can from the track."
He promised to do "whatever is needed" to get the iconic outfit back to the front of the field. The Italian said he spent time with his predecessor Domenicali before Monday's announcement, having only been offered the role three days earlier.
"I received a call at 5:58am on Friday morning and the chairman Montezemolo was on the phone and told me ‘this is my idea’," he explained.
"I thought that April fool was already 15 days earlier so in the second or third minutes of the discussion I understood he was serious, and I understood that because there was already a ticket ready to go from New York to Milan in three hours. I arrived on Saturday morning in Maranello at the Fiorano track."
Fernando Alonso and Kimi Raikkonen shared their views on Thursday.
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