Page 29 - Ferrari in F1

TON WATSON FINE BOO
2009
DALTON WATSON FINE BOOKS
© DALTON WATSON FINE BOOKS
Räikkönen’s renaissance came too late for Ferrari. Before
the Italian Grand Prix at Monza, Ferrari announced a new
sponsorship agreement with the Spanish bank Santander, and
there was no longer any doubt that Fernando Alonso, after a long
campaign of mutual seduction, was on his way to the Ferrari team.
There were now three drivers contracted for 2010, as in addition
© DALTON WATSON FINE BOOKS
to Alonso and Räikkönen, Massa insisted that he intended to
prepare for the new season. The team suddenly had one driver
too many. Räikkönen was rewarded with a golden parachute for
the continuing success after the Schumacher era. It seems that he
was paid half his 2010 salary for leaving the team and he became
a rally driver, while Massa and Alonso prepared to lead Ferrari to
further victories in 2010. ■
c Luca Badoer, Scuderia reserve driver. He replaced Felipe
Massa after the latter’s accident in Hungary in 2009.
b But Badoer was too slow, and the tifosi
demanded his departure after two races. The sign says,
“My grandmother is faster than Badoer…”
DALTON WATSON