Ferrari haven’t found a successor for Binotto, who are the favourites?

After days of intense rumours, Ferrari today (29/11) officially announced the resignation of Mattia Binotto from the post of Scuderia’s Technical Director.

For now, the Italian team has made it clear that they are in the process of picking their replacement and will announce him in early 2023.

Reports from the main Italian newspapers have been saying for days that Alfa Romeo F1/Sauber racing director Fred Wasser is the front-runner for the anointing. The Frenchman has close ties to the Todt family and Charles Leclerc’s manager Nicolas Todt.

Leclerc managed Vasseur on his F1 debut in 2018 with Alfa Romeo and earlier in his career. The Monegasque has raced in both karts and Formula 3 with Vasseur’s ART team and his arrival at Maranello seems an ideal fit for Leclerc in terms of balance within the team.

At the same time, a recent publication by French newspaper L’Equipe reported that there had been a rupture in the Monegasque pilot’s relations with Binotto since last June, when the two spoke. In fact, Binotto traveled to Monaco this summer to meet Leclerc for a private lunch.

Leclerc is rumored to be pushing for a change in leadership while most recently opening up the possibility of leaving Maranello at the end of 2024 when his contract expires. And the first rumors about Mercedes came out.

Furthermore, Binotto’s resignation was reportedly the result of a dispute the Italian had with Ferrari President John Elkann and CEO Benedetto Vigna.

Reports in Italy agree that alongside water there was an approach from Ferrari to McLaren race director Andreas Siddle, but the German declined.

Yesterday, meanwhile, a publication in Italy’s La Stampa reported that a possible replacement for Binotto – although not the most likely – is Ross Bron, the team’s technical director during Scuderia’s dominance with Michael Schumacher (2000-’04).

Braun held the role of Mercedes F1 race director until his retirement in 2014, but returned three years later as Formula 1 race director, working for the sport’s new owner, US-based company Liberty Media.

Braun was working on the new regulations for 2022 and at the end of this season has fulfilled his commitment to step down from that role as well.

In his latest article, the Brit says his Formula 1 career is now over and, in his own words, it seems doubtful that Ferrari can convince him to bring him back to Maranello: “I’ve enjoyed everything I’ve done over the past few years. I’ve moved away from wanting to be part of a team, I’ve decided I’ve done too much of that already! And (his new role in F1 management) was the only thing that could have irritated me. Now is the right time for me to retire.” Bron wrote.

He continued, “We have done most of the work and are now in a period of consolidation [των τεχνικών αλλαγών]. There will be a new car in 2026, but there are still four years to go and that’s still a long way to go for me. So it’s better if the next group of people takes over.

I think I’m leaving F1 in a great place. Now I will be watching F1 from my sofa, cheering or swearing like any F1 fan, happy that the sport is at a fantastic level and has a fantastic future too.”

Officially, Mattia Binotto will remain in his position at Scuderia until December 31, 2022, and his successor will come to Maranello at the beginning of the new year. In the event that Ferrari has not reached an agreement by then, this role will be assumed by Ferrari CEO Benedetto Vigna for as long as necessary.

Similar to a Greek football team, Ferrari will change its fifth race director in the last decade. The burden will be heavy on the next man’s shoulders as he is tasked with giving Ferrari its first Formula One championship in 15 years.

Mattia Binotto took over from Maurizio Arrivabene at Ferrari in 2019 and managed to become competitive again for the first time since 2008 with the fastest car in the sport in the first half of the season.

Scuderia claimed 4 wins and 12 pole positions, but the team’s upward trend stumbled again in the constant roar at the Maranello circuits.

Photo credit: Scuderia Ferrari press office