There are some world champions in self-importance and long-windedness among the key players in the Formula One paddock, but Di Montezemolo is easy on the ear as he sets out his thoughts.
The man loves racing drivers. He first managed the Ferrari Formula One team in 1973 and he has worked closely with two of the best, Niki Lauda, the triple world champion, and Michael Schumacher, the seven-times champion. He knows greatness when he sees it. Of course to a British audience the key question is what he thinks of Lewis Hamilton, at 23, the youngest world champion the sport has known and a driver tipped by many to go on to rival the feats of Schumacher, whose picture has pride of place in the dining room.
Di Montezemolo was asked whether he believes that Hamilton is destined to become one of the great drivers and whether he would like him to join Ferrari one day. “I think he is a very, very good driver,” Di Montezemolo said in his heavily accented English with a flick of his left wrist, on which, incongruously, he sports a tattoo of a tortoise. “Last year Hamilton was fantastic. He can pay a little price last year because of the pressure and his lack of experience. But I think if he will continue to drive a competitive car, he can enter the history of Formula One.
“Regarding Ferrari, of course I would like to have a driver like Hamilton, like Alonso. But that will be in another life, because in this life I have Michael, Kimi and Felipe. Maybe in two years I will tell you something different, but at the moment I am very, very happy. And don’t forget Felipe won the championship until 15 seconds to go — he won more races than Hamilton. But there is no question that Hamilton deserved to win, particularly in light of what he lost last year.”
“If Massa did not win it this year, we (the team) were to blame. It would have been normal for him to win. He didn’t manage to because of our mistakes.”
“Let’s make this clear: Lewis Hamilton is a great driver who was able to get within a whisker of the title in his first year in F1 before winning it in his second. However, with all due respect, I wouldn’t change him with Felipe Massa.”
He added: “Felipe is extremely popular, for the man he is, for the great driver he’s demonstrated to be, and for the beautiful way he lost the championship.”
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