Ferrari have confirmed that Mattia Binotto has replaced Maurizio Arrivabene as team principal of Ferrari with immediate affect.
Following earlier reports from Italy, the news has been made official and Binotto will take the reins of the team for the 2019 season.
Having originally joined Ferrari as team principal in 2014 as a replacement for Marco Mattiacci, Arrivabene had been brought in by the late Sergio Marchionne, who passed away in 2018.
With John Elkann taking over as Ferrari chairman following Marchionne’s death, a shake-up of Ferrari management was always possible.
Ferrari’s inability to mount a consistent challenge to either championship has caused them to assess their current staff, starting with academy driver Charles Leclerc being promoted to race driver alongside Sebastian Vettel, replacing Kimi Raikkonen.
However, performances on the pit wall were also questioned, with tactical errors (e.g. during the qualifying sessions for the Italian and Japanese Grands Prix) and decisions to not employ team orders (e.g at the Austrian and German Grands Prix) hampering their season.
Tensions were believed to be high between Arrivabene and Binotto, who was employed as their Chief Technical Officer. Ferrari’s press release confirms that all relevant technical areas will still report to Binotto, and no new technical chief has been named.
An official statement from Ferrari read:
“After four years of untiring commitment and dedication, Maurizio Arrivabene is leaving the team. The decision was taken together with the company’s top management after lengthy discussions related to Maurizio’s long term personal interests as well as those of the team itself.
“Ferrari would like to thank Maurizio for his valuable contribution to the team’s increasing competitiveness over the past few years, and wish him the best for his future endeavours.
“With immediate effect, Mattia Binotto will take over as Scuderia Ferrari’s Team Principal. All technical areas will continue to report directly to Mattia.”
