MotoGP: In memory of Marco Simoncelli

Three years have passed since the horrible crash which ended the life of Marco Simoncelli way too soon. Three years and it still feels as if it was yesterday. MotoGP moved on, but there still is something large, with curly hair missing. And the question "What if Marco was racing?" still occurs to me often. Come on, Marquez vs Simoncelli, that would have been exceptional. What if...What if tragedy hadn't struck three years ago?

I honestly think I never going to be able to delete the footage of the crash from my memory. Too bad. I saw the crash happening once, live on television, but I can still see it in front of me when I close my eyes. But now that three years have passed, I think I moved on from the real sadness and came into the state of being proud that I have known Marco and that I have been able to see him race. For me, Marco is being able to smile when someone says “I’ll be arrest!”. I have many great memories of Marco and those will never fade. 

Because of our SuperSic I have met many great people, all around the world. Bounded by one man. And I honestly think that’s incredible. If you can touch and change the lives of so many people, you must have been pretty extraordinary. I here also want to thank everybody who has supported me on the “We want a Simoncelli corner at Mugello” project. We’re not there yet and I maybe we never will but the support we’ve got has been immense. And I can never thank all of you enough for that. 

We still miss you, Marco and that will never change. But for us, you will live on forever, we will never forget you and there will always be a place for you in our hearts. Keep racing in heaven, SuperSic!

Catya Leroux

F1: The day death became close again

“Sunday was the worst race of my life. Even worse than the race of my accident.” Those words came out of the mouth of Felipe Massa at today’s press conference. Words that say a lot. And I think they pretty much say what many drivers and fans are thinking. Sunday was a horrible day and for fans like me, who weren’t born when Ayrton Senna died, the first time we were really confronted with how close death (still) is in Formula One.

“All our thoughts are with Jules” and “We race for Jules” are two of the sentences I have heard and read a lot today on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook profiles from F1 drivers. They have stickers on their helmets and cars to support Jules and his family. Try to put yourself in their position, just five days after one of their colleagues and friends has crashed, they have to get back into their car and race. They have to completely focus on their racing because if they don’t, the risk they would crash themselves becomes larger.  

On top of that I can imagine not thinking about Jules Bianchi during the racing will be immensely difficult for them this weekend. The young Frenchman will be in all of our thoughts this weekend, as he has been the whole week. And I have to admit, this may sound stupid for some people who don’t know what we’re going through right now, but I live in a state of constant fear. Every time I switch on my phone, when I go on Facebook or Twitter, I’m afraid I will see the news Jules didn’t make it. I am trying to stay positive and tell myself he will make it, but the fear he won’t is also there. 

I know I’m not the only one going through this because all the actions to support Jules this week has been heartwarming. #DressForJules this Wednesday when all people were asked to wear red or other F1 related clothes, #BianchiDay today on Instagram and Twitter, organized by F1 Connection. And there were probably many more and I’m sure there will be many more this weekend. We, the Formula One fans, stand together. We all hope for the same thing: good news from one of our young, very talented drivers. That’s the only thing that matters right now. The racing doesn’t this weekend. Whoever may win on Sunday, they win for Bianchi. My boy Jules, we are all here with you and we believe you will make it. I end with a sentence I have read on Twitter some days ago: "If he can finish ninth with a Marussia, then he can do this as well." 

 

Forza Jules! 

Catya Leroux

F1: Traitor or victim? Will the real Alonso please stand up?

"Fernando Alonso is leaving Ferrari." This is the headline I've been reading a lot (like, really a lot!) the last few days. It's "official" and "in the next days/weeks the press release from Ferrari will come". But after all I still don't believe it and if it is true it would be the biggest mistake Ferrari could make. Come on, are we really that stupid to fire one of the best drivers ever?! 

One of the aspects many "sources" disagree on is whether it is Ferrari who are on the verge of dismissing Fernando Alonso or whether Alonso has decided to leave the Italians. Or who betrays who? Who’s the bad guy and who is the victim?

Case 1: Ferrari has enough of the Spanish Samurai

 

I find it hard to believe ANY team could even think about letting Alonso go. There is no such thing as the perfect driver but Fernando is close. He's a true racer, he doesn't settle for second, he takes risks many others wouldn't dare to take. But on the same time he is a smart driver: he understands perfectly what he's doing and what it takes to win. On the circuit he is one of the (maybe even THE) best drivers of the last decade. But also next to the track, he's the perfect driver. Alonso is great at motivating his team and creating a good atmosphere in the pit box. Even when it doesn't go as good as it should, "we win but also lose together" is a sentence he has said (too) many times.

So why on earth would Ferrari fire him?! I can't think of anyone who would be able to take the Spaniard's place and do better. Of course, lately Ferrari is not achieving the results it should be achieving and the frustration is reaching higher and higher levels. The big bosses in Maranello are frustrated, the guys who are working day and night to improve the cars are frustrated, the drivers are frustrated and (believe me) the fans are frustrated. Frustration can lead to impulsive decisions. Is that what happened? 

Case 2:  Alonso has enough of the Italian reds

Alonso is clearly annoyed the Italian media is not on his side (anymore) and of course he wants to fight for the world title. In his five years with Ferrari, the number of titles is still zero... And that hurts him. He gave his all for the team and I think he feels he doesn't get enough in return. Every year the Italian team promises him a winning car and for several years even winning just races has been a huge task, let alone titles. Alonso probably expected to achieve more after five years at Ferrari. We all did. Several things went wrong for the team the last few years but I don't think anyone can blaim the Spaniard.

I have a huge amount of respect for Fernando Alonso, not only because he's a great driver but also because I believe his personality is different than that of other F1 drivers. I believe, might be naïve, that he honestly cares about Ferrari. Every driver has used the sentences "the team is my family" and "this is where I'm home" because the team and fans especially love to hear such a things. When those sentences are used, most of the time it's when all is well. Then everybody is one happy family. But when things aren't going well, then you see who's really part of the family. 

I see footballer Francesco Totti from AS Roma as the perfect example of this. He could have left and probably have scored more and won more titles. But he didn't. He stayed loyal to his team in good times but even more in bad. He wants to win with AS Roma, not with another team. Alonso hasn't been with Ferrari as long as Totti with Roma but I believe he really wants to win with the Italian team. So from that point of view I don't think Alonso will change his Ferrari for a McLaren. Fingers crossed I'm right! 

Would I be disappointed if ALO leaves Ferrari? Extremely! Would I understand? Yes... I wouldn't blame him because after all he's a racer and he wants to win. If Ferrari isn't giving him the car he needs, he has every right to find it somewhere else. But then he shouldn't be surprised if the passionate red fans call him a traitor. So if Alonso would leave, in a way I would understand. If Ferrari would fire the Spaniard, I wouldn't understand at all. It would be by far one of the biggest mistakes in the history of the team. Firing Luca di Montezemolo was a mistake in my eyes but nothing compared to the mistake of firing Alonso.


Catya Leroux

F1: The Mistake named Marchionne

After many rumours, the President of Ferrari Luca di Montezemolo announced he will step back from the company he has led for the last 23 years. Big boss from the FIAT Group, Sergio Marchionne himself will take over. The end of an era and in my eyes, possibly a huge mistake. For Ferrari as brand in general and even more for its millions of red fans.

Luca Cordero di Montezemolo has been the big leader of the Italians for over 20 years. He has joined the brand in the seventies as assistant of Enzo Ferrari himself. Later he took over the team and the whole brand. With di Montezemolo at the top Ferrari booked their biggest successes, 124 victories in Formula One and the brand became one of the strongest supercar brands in the world. With Ferrari Stores all around the world, filled with tons of merchandising of the red team. Ferrari is a team and a brand based on tradition. Well, it was. Marchionne is determined to change the whole team.

Enzo Ferrari's only reason to build streetcars was to make money to fund his racing team. That was his only priority. He limited the amount of cars that were produced and di Montezemolo followed that tactic for the next decades. And it worked perfectly, last week the brand announced record earnings up by 14.5 percent in the first half of 2014 over the same period last year, which itself had seen a 7.1-percent increase over the year before. Di Montezemolo restricted the production this year to a max of 7.000 cars a year, Marchionne wants at least 10.000. That's production up by almost 50%

This is only one of my many doubts about Ferrari's future with Marchionne. Ferrari is an exclusive super brand. "We don't build cars, we build dreams", Enzo said. Di Montezemolo also wanted to build dreams, Marchionne wants to build as many cars as possible. That worked with Fiat but Ferrari is no Fiat. Ferrari has become much more than a car brand. Ferrari is passion and history and I fear Marchionne will neglect that. Ferrari doesn't need to compete with a Porsche Panamera or a Cayenne, they should stay with what they do best, exclusive supercars. A Ferrari car must stay something special, a dream for many, reality for the happy few.


I also wonder what the new boss will mean for the Formula One department. Marchionne wants to make profit and Ferrari's F1 budget is about 200 million euro each year. I wouldn't be surprised if Marchionne wants to cut in that budget as well, to higher the profit. But if that will help to achieve better results and new championships, that's a completely other question...

Marchionne shouldn't forget that Ferrari is a team and brand with millions and millions of fans and they live the passion that he is only interested in selling. He wants to sell the cars, we want to live the dream. Di Montezemolo was also of the second kind, Ferrari was his life and he honestly cared for the whole brand. Marchionne is more the businessman kind of person and I just hope he will not destroy the legacy Enzo Ferrari and Luca di Montezemolo have built. As fans, we are the ones who stick behind our team. When drivers, engineers and bosses leave, we're still there supporting the team. So Mr Marchionne, please don't just think about the money but think about the millions of Ferrari fans as well when you have to make decisions about the future of the company. Prove me I'm wrong doubting you. Forza Ferrari!

Catya Leroux