Todt: Ferrari's attitude in Germany was "provocative"

Jean Todt said Ferrari's blatant use of team orders in Germany was so provocative that it forced the FIA ​​to take action, but stressed that he thought other teams had behaved similarly with more aggressive methods. subtle and less brazen, since the ban on team games was introduced.

Scuderia Ferrari was fined by the Hockenheim judges after Massa moved to let teammate Alonso pass so he could win in his place. Although the team was called to appear before the FIA ​​World Council, the Council decided not to take any action against Ferrari, but announced that it will review the regulations relating to team orders if it deems it necessary .

“Team orders were banned in 2002, but I wondered: how many other times have there been team orders, but applied in a way that went unnoticed?” the Frenchman told the newspaper La Stampa.

The difference is that what Ferrari did was anything but hidden. It was a provocation towards the regulation.

Todt suggests that the revision of the rules will consist more of a modification of the current regulation rather than a revolution of the same. “There must be greater respect for the rules. And these rules must be clear. F1 is a team sport, and each team must take responsibility for its behavior. Lies, or coded messages like “conserve fuel” will no longer be tolerated.”

In an interview with Gazzetta dello Sport, the FIA ​​president added “the rules relating to team orders must be changed in order to avoid the hypocrisy of grotesque communications between the pit wall and the drivers”. He then explained: “I asked the Sporting Working Group for a proposal to revise the rules. I hope to have an answer in time for December 9th, when the world council will be held in Monte Carlo.

Todt does not deny that he was involved in the controversy that arose at the time between Barrichello and Schumacher precisely because of team orders, when in 2002 the Brazilian ceded the victory of the Zeltweg Grand Prix to his teammate in the final meters of the race. To the question posed by La Stampa whether he regretted that gesture or not, he replied: “I am, because in hindsight that maneuver was useless. Schumacher would have won the world championship anyway. But I would have had a lot of regrets if he had lost it in the end by just two points”.

According to Todt, it was Barrichello's behavior that inflamed the situation. “I shouldn't have said anything to him. We had already agreed previously: if he found himself in first position after the pit stops he would have to let Schumacher pass without creating confusion: he accepted: on the other hand, a driver is also paid to obey certain orders. Instead, he preferred to stay in front. I called him back 50 times, clearly repeating the agreement. He gave in at the last corner, in front of a booing crowd. On the podium Schumacher gave him the first step, but Ferrari was punished for breaking the regulations with a fine of 500.000 dollars."

Gian Maria Di Stefano