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I Witnessed: Luca’s last laugh
4 years ago
Luca di Montezemolo served as Ferrari president until 2014
It was di Montezemolo who took over an ailing Scuderia Ferrari aged just 26 in 1974 and masterminded three world drivers’ championships and four constructors’ titles in the next five seasons. Ferrari’s F1 fortunes fell once more upon his departure but then he returned, and while it took a while to bring the team back to top form, Ferrari and Schumacher’s five straight titles from 2000-2004 eclipsed anything achieved in Enzo’s era.
As for the road cars, when di Montezemolo took the presidency in 1991, Ferrari had arguably the least impressive portfolio of products in its history with cars like the 348tb, Mondial and Testarossa failing entirely to live up to the standards of their illustrious forebears. Di Montezemolo stopped the rot and, starting with the 456GT of 1993, started a transformation of Ferrari that made the company wildly profitable and created the most capable model range in its history.
So why was he going? The official reason was that Ferrari was about to float on the New York Stock Exchange, representing a new era for the company and as good a jumping off spot as a 67-year-old di Montezemolo would likely find. But the rumour mill insisted the truth was he’d been shoved aside by Sergio Marchionne, the boss of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles which then owned Ferrari. And there was no secret that it was Marchionne who’d be taking over the presidency and chairmanship of Ferrari on October 13th, the day of di Montezemolo’s departure.
"It was the best answer to any question I’ve asked in a press conference. Not his words, you understand, for they merely parroted the plain vanilla party line, but the index finger of his left hand, which jabbed repeatedly and directly at Marchionne"
I’d bagged a front row seat and sat fascinated by the body language between these two automotive giants: di Montezemolo immaculately turned out as ever, with a smile on his face and an open, demonstrative gesture, Marchionne in his trademark pullover, flicking through swatches of leather, a look of studied boredom on his face.
So I asked Luca straight: ‘Why are you leaving?’
It was the best answer to any question I’ve asked in a press conference. Not his words, you understand, for they merely parroted the plain vanilla party line, but the index finger of his left hand, which jabbed repeatedly and directly at Marchionne as he spoke. Any audio would record not just his entirely loyal response, but the gasps, titters and giggles of the press whose ears were being given one story, while their eyes received quite another.
It was pure Luca: inside his heart must have been breaking to have been cast aside after all he’d done over such a long period of time, but to us he was effortlessly cool and classy to the last. And very, very funny.
