Ferrari - The Greatest F1 Racing Team

Ferrari – The Greatest F1 Racing Team? It is perhaps the best-known and most historic team in F1. They have competed in every F1 championship since the sport was officially launched in 1950. The team’s founder, Enzo Ferrari, is a legendary name in Formula One.

No other team can trace its history for the same time (even those who operated under different names in the past), and none have the historical pedigree unique to Ferrari. Some of the best Formula One drivers in the world (including Lewis Hamilton) have long dreamed of driving for the team in red.

They have won 16 world championships, and although they have experienced difficult times since they last won a contractors title, they have a depth and history that is Ferrari’s alone.

The History Of Ferrari F1

So where did it all start?

The Pre-War Years

Enzo Ferrari founded the team in 1929. He started off by building cars for Alfa Romeo. In the early days, they had a team of forty drivers, most of whom raced in various Alfa Romeo 8C cars.

Ferrari -  The Greatest F1 Racing Team?- Enzo Ferrari

Enzo Ferrari raced himself until his son, Dino, was born in 1932. The infamous prancing horse first appeared in an Alpha Romeo in Belgium at the 1932 Spa 24 Hours.

In 1933 Alpha Romeo suffered financial difficulties and withdrew its in-house team from racing. From then on, Ferrari acted as the official Alpha Romeo racing team.

This biggest change happened when the Alpha Romeo factory was released for Ferrari Scuderia’s use of the up-to-date Monoposto Tipo B racers.

During 1935 Enzo and Luigi Bazzi produced the first Alfa Romeo Bimotore, the first car adorned with a Ferrari badge on the radiator cowl. 1937 was the year that Alfa Romeo bought all of the shares of Scuderia Ferrari.

In 1938 Alpha Romeo employed Enzo Ferrari as a full-time manager in their racing division.

Alpha Romeo sacked Enzo in 1939. This resulted in Enzo forming the Auto Avio Costruzioni Ferrari. Hse made a deal that he would not use the Ferrari name on his cars for four years.

In 1943 the company moved its headquarters to Maranello, which has since become its spiritual home and manufacturing base.

Marinello than and now
Marinello than and now

World War 2 broke out and all racing activities stopped until 1946. The company manufactured machine tools until bombs hit the factory in 1944.

Ferrari – The Post War Years

After the four-year naming restriction expired, the road car company changed its name to Ferrari S.p.A. The racing division changed its name to SEFAC.

In 1947 Enzo switched to building his own cars. Since then, outside of F1, the team has also won the following races.

  • World Sportscar Championship
  • 24 Hours of Le Mans
  • 24 Hours of Spa
  • 24 Hours of Daytona
  • 12 Hours of Sebring
  • Bathurst 12 Hour
  • Road courses include the Targa Florio, the Mille Miglia, and the Carrera Panamericana.

Ferrari Scuderia – The Name

Ferrari -  The Greatest F1 Racing Team?

Ferrari is named after the founder, Enzo Ferrari.

Scuderia is an Italian word meaning a stable used for racing horses and is also commonly applied to all Italian motor racing teams.

Ferrari –  The Greatest F1 Racing Team? – The Prancing Horse

Ferrari -  The Greatest F1 Racing Team? Prancing Horse

The prancing horse symbol was used on Francesco Baracca’s (an Italian world war 2 fighter ace) fighter plane.

Enzo adopted it as Ferrari’s logo after the fallen ace’s parents, who were close friends with Enzo Ferrari, suggested that he use the symbol as the logo of the Scuderia.

They hoped that this would bring the team good luck.

What Is The Official Name Of The F1 Team – Ferrari?

The teams official name is Scuderia Ferrari S.p.A.

Ferrari –  The Greatest F1 Racing Team?

Enzo refused to race in the first event of 1950 (at Silverstone in the United Kingdom) due to a dispute with the organizers over “start money.”

Enzo also believed that the Ferrari cars powered by the 1.5l V12 would be trounced by the high performing 400 bhp Alfas with supercharged straight-eight cylinder engines.

Rather than suffering the ignominy of being defeated by Alpha Romeo (his old partner with whom he shared an adversarial relationship), he held off entry until they had a more competitive car.

Enzo built a naturally aspirated 4.5 liter V12 powered car to achieve this, which ended up dominating Alfa the following year.

Which Manufacturers Started Racing In Formula 1?

The first official formula one race was held at Silverstone in the United Kingdom. It was entered by the following racing teams.

TeamNumber Of Cars RacedCar
Talbot Lagos5 cars racedTalbot Lagos
Maserati6 cars racedMaserati
ERAs4 cars raced1950 ERA
Alta’s2 cars racedAlta
Alpha Romeo4 Alfetta 158s cars racedAlfetta 158 F1 Silverstone

The winner was Giuseppe “Nino” Farina driving one of the Alfa Romeo’s

Alfa and Maserati are the only manufacturers building regular road cars under the original brand names.

Special Benefits (Rules) Applicable To Ferrari

In 1987, Ferrari seriously considered abandoning Formula One and moving to the American IndyCar series.

The team used this threat as a bargaining tool with the FIA. It was not a false threat, as Ferrari had already developed the car they would use for IndyCar.

Enzo Ferrari finally offered to cancel the IndyCar Project in exchange for a commitment that the technical regulations would not change to exclude V12 engines.

This was ultimately agreed upon by the FIA agreed, and Ferrari canceled its IndyCar plans (even though they had already built a car!)

In 2009 it was finally revealed that Ferrari holds an FIA-sanctioned veto on any changes proposed to the technical regulations. No other teams have this right.

Ferrari F1 Sponsors

Until 1977 Ferrari resisted receiving any kind of sponsorship. In 1977 FIAT (Ferrari’s owners) placed a FIAT logo on the car.

Until then, the only companies that had any kind of representation on the cars were their technical partners Magneti Marelli, Brembo, and Agip.

Marlboro was one of Ferrari’s minor sponsors and had a logo on the car from the 1984 season.

In the 1996 season, tobacco company Philip Morris International (Marlboro cigarettes) switched its whole sponsorship from McLaren (with whom they had a 22-year relationship) to Ferrari. One of these results was that the team finally changed its official name to Scuderia Ferrari.

In 2005 Santander entered into a 5-year sponsorship agreement with Ferrari.

In 2022 the following companies sponsored Ferrari Scuderia.

Ferrari -  The Greatest F1 Racing Team - Shell

Ferrari’s Formula One Statistics

For a team that has raced for 72 consecutive years in F1, far fewer championship victories have been won than expected. The total of Ferrari’s championship wins in Formula One is summarized in the table below.

RecordAs A TeamAs A Constructor
Most Constructors’ Championships1616
Most Drivers’ Championships1515
Most Grands Prix participated10571057
Most Grands Prix started10541055
Most wins241242
Most podium finishes793 (in 603 races)798 (in 606 races)
Most 1–2 finishes8485
Most pole positions242242
Most Constructors’ Championship points9292
Most Drivers’ Championship points9884.79
Most fastest laps258259
The seasons with the most wins20 (1994–2013)20 (1994–2013)

Last Ferrari F1 Champion

The Ferrari drivers who won the 15 Ferraris driver championships are listed below.

Ferrari -  The Greatest F1 Racing Team?- juan-manuel-fangio
DRIVER’S CHAMPIONSYEARCOUNTRY
Alberto Ascari 1952, 1953Italy Italian Flag
Juan Manuel Fangio1956Argentina Argentinan Flag
 Mike Hawthorn 1958United KingdomUnion Jack
Phil Hill 1961United States Stars And Stripes
John Surtees 1964United Kingdom Union Jack
Niki Lauda 1975, 1977Austria Flag-Austria
Jody Scheckter 1979South Africa South Africa flag
Michael Schumacher 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004Germany German Flag
Kimi Räikkönen 2007Finland Finnish flag

Ferrari Team Principals

In recent years, one of the team’s weaknesses has been the lack of continuity with the team principals. The team principals through the years are listed below.

Team principals do not stay long at Ferrari, and continuity has affected their performance.

On average, team principals only stay for 2.9 years. If you remove the two longest-serving team principals (Jean Todt and Stefano Domenicali), the situation worsens, with the average stay reducing to 2 years. It’s almost as if the team is at war with itself.

PrincipalPeriodNationalityChampionship
Wins
Federico Giberti1950–1951Italian0Italian Flag
Nello Ugolini1952–1955Italian0Italian Flag
Eraldo Sculati1956Italian0Italian Flag
Mino Amorotti1957Italian0Italian Flag
Romolo Tavoni 1958–1961Italian1Italian Flag
Eugenio Dragoni1962–1966Italian1Italian Flag
Franco Lini1967Italian0Italian Flag
Franco Gozzi1968–1970Italian0Italian Flag
Peter Schetty1971–1972Swiss0Swiss Flag
Alessandro Colombo1973Italian0Italian Flag
Luca Cordero di Montezemolo1974–1975Italian1Italian Flag
Daniele Audetto 1976Italian1Italian Flag
Roberto Nosetto1977Italian1Italian Flag
Marco Piccinini 1978–1988Monaco3Flag Monaco
Cesare Fiorio 1989–1991Italian0Italian Flag
Claudio Lombardi 1991Italian0Italian Flag
Sante Ghedini1992–1993Italian0Italian Flag
Jean Todt 1993–2007French7Monaco Flag
Stefano Domenicali2008–2014Italian1Italian Flag
Marco Mattiacci 2014Italian0Italian Flag
Maurizio Arrivabene 2015–2018Italian0Italian Flag
Mattia Binotto 2019–2022Italian0Italian Flag
Frédéric Vasseur 2023French0Monaco Flag

It is interesting that Jean Todt was the longest serving principal and also achieved the highest number of championship wins. Something for Ferrari to think about in terms of maintaining continuity.

Ferrari –  The Greatest F1 Racing Team? Winning Percentages

Ferrari has achieved the following percentage of wins.

  • Constructors’ Championships winning percentage: 24.6%
  • Drivers’ Championships winning percentage: 20.5%
  • The team entered 1057 races (and started 1055.)
  • It has won 242 races.
  • Winning percentage: 22.9%.

Ferrari –  The Greatest F1 Racing Team – Engines

It is the only F1 team to have competed in the series every season. Since 1951 Ferrari has manufactured 69 different Formula vehicles.

Since 1951, F1 cars powered by Ferrari engines have achieved the following.

  • With two hundred forty-one wins, cars powered by Ferrari engines have won more F1 races than any other engine manufacturer.
  • The Ferrari engines have achieved 232 pole positions.
  • Ferrari engines have achieved 257 fastest laps.

From the outset, Ferrari has built its own engines. Over the years, the team has also provided engines to the following teams.

  • Minardi (1991)
  • Scuderia Italia (1992–1993)
  • Sauber (1997–2005 with engines badged as ‘Petronas,’ and 2010–2018)
  • Prost (2001, badged ‘Acer’)
  • Red Bull Racing (2006)
  • Spyker (2007)
  • Scuderia Toro Rosso (2007–2013, 2016)
  • Force India (2008).
  • Marussia (2014–2015).
  • Haas F1 Team (2016 – Current)
  • Alfa Romeo Racing (2019 – Current)

After the regulation changed in 2014, Cosworth stopped producing engines.

Ferrari F1 Drivers By Year

The following lists all of the drivers that have competed in Ferrari in Formula One

The 2000s

NameDurationGrand Prix StartsDrivers ChampsNationality
Carlos Sainz, Jr.2021-present81 0Spain
Charles Leclerc2019-present44 0Flag Monaco
Sebastian Vettel2015-2020118 0German Flag
Fernando Alonso2010-201496 0Spain
Luca Badoer20092 0Italian Flag
Giancarlo Fisichella20095 0Italian Flag
Kimi Räikkönen2007-2009, 2014-20181521Danish Flag
Felipe Massa2006-2013139 0Brazilian Flag
Rubens Barrichello2000-2005102 0Brazilian Flag

The 1990s

Ferrari -  The Greatest F1 Racing Team?
Driver NameDurationGrand Prix StartsDriver Champs
Finland Mika Salo199960
Germany Michael Schumacher1996-20061805
United Kingdom Eddie Irvine1996-1999650
Italy Nicola Larini1992, 19944
Italy Ivan Capelli199214
France Jean Alesi1991-199579
Italy Gianni Morbidelli19911
France Alain Prost1990-199130

The 1980s

Ferrari -  The Greatest F1 Racing Team?
Driver NameDurationGrand Prix StartsDriver Champs
United Kingdom Nigel Mansell1989-199031
Austria Gerhard Berger1987-1989, 1993-199597
Sweden Stefan Johansson1985-198631
Italy Michele Alboreto1984-198880
France René Arnoux1983-198532
France Patrick Tambay1982-198321
France Didier Pironi1981-198225
South Africa Jody Scheckter1979-1980281

The 1970s

Ferrari -  The Greatest F1 Racing Team?
Drivers NameDurationGrand Prix StartsDriver Champs
Canada Gilles Villeneuve1977-198266
Argentina Carlos Reutemann1976-197834
Switzerland Clay Regazzoni1970-1972, 1974-197672
Austria Niki Lauda1974-1977572
Italy Nanni Galli19721
Italy Arturo Merzario1972-197311
United States Mario Andretti1971-1972, 198212
Italy Ignazio Giunti19704

The 1960s

Ferrari -  The Greatest F1 Racing Team?
Drivers NameDurationGrand Prix StartsDriver Champs
Belgium Jacky Ickx1968, 1970-197355
Italy Andrea de Adamich19681
United Kingdom Derek Bell19682
New Zealand Chris Amon1967-196927
United Kingdom Jonathan Williams19671
United Kingdom Mike Parkes1966-19676
Italy Nino Vaccarella19651
United States Bob Bondurant19651
Mexico Pedro Rodríguez1964-1965, 19698
United Kingdom John Surtees1963-1965301
Italy Ludovico Scarfiotti1963-19676
Italy Lorenzo Bandini1962-196735
Italy Giancarlo Baghetti19624
Mexico Ricardo Rodríguez1961-19625
United States Richie Ginther1960-196110
Belgium Willy Mairesse1960-196310

The 1950s

Drivers NameDurationGrand Prix StartsDrivers Champs
France Jean Behra19593
United Kingdom Cliff Allison1959-19606
United States Dan Gurney19594
United Kingdom Tony Brooks19597
United States Phil Hill1958-1962311
Italy Cesare Perdisa19571
Germany Wolfgang von Trips1957-196125
Belgium Olivier Gendebien1956, 1958-19618
Argentina Juan Manuel Fangio195671
Spain Alfonso de Portago1956-19575
Italy Luigi Musso1956-195815
United Kingdom Peter Collins1956-195820
Belgium André Pilette19561
Belgium Paul Frère1955-19563
United States Harry Schell19551
Italy Eugenio Castellotti1955-195711

Who Drives For Ferrari F1

The current (2023) Ferrari F1 drivers are listed below.

Drivers’ Standings

The 2023 drivers’ standings (after the third race) are listed below.

PositionDriverTeamPointsCountry
1Max VerstappenRed Bull Racing69Dutch Flag
2Sergio PerezRed Bull Racing54Flag Mexico
3Fernando AlonsoAston Martin F1 Team45Spain
4Lewis HamiltonMercedes AMG F138Union Jack
5Carlos SainzScuderia Ferrari20Spain
6Lance StrollAston Martin F1 Team20Canadian Flag
7George RussellMercedes AMG F118Union Jack
8Lando NorrisMcLaren Racing8Union Jack
9Nico HulkenbergHaas F16German Flag
10Charles LeclercScuderia Ferrari6Flag Monaco
11Valtteri BottasAlfa Romeo Racing4Finnish flag
12Esteban OconAlpine F14Monaco Flag
13Oscar PiastriMcLaren Racing4Flag Australia
14Pierre GaslyAlpine F14Monaco Flag
15Zhou GuanyuAlfa Romeo Racing2Flag-China
16Yuki TsunodaScuderia Alpha Tauri1Japan Flag
17Kevin MagnussenHaas F11Danish Flag
18Alexander AlbonWilliams Racing1Union Jack
19Logan SargeantWilliams Racing0Stars And Stripes
20Nyck de VriesScuderia Alpha Tauri0Dutch Flag

Youngest Ferrari F1 Driver

Ferrari -  The Greatest F1 Racing Team?- Ricardo Rodriguez

The youngest Ferrari driver was Ricardo Rodriguez, representing his hometown of Mexico City, Mexico.

Conclusion – Ferrari – The Greatest F1 Racing Team?

Ferrari’s glory days may seem to be behind them. Our view is don’t write this historical team off. They have bounced back in the past and, with the right management and drivers, will do so again.

By Jonny Noble

ABOUT THE AUTHOR - Jonny Noble I’m a dedicated F1 Writer – and I’ve Been One for Over Four Decades, I’ve been intimately immersed in the world of Formula One for more than 44 years. That’s longer than most professional commentators can boast! As an independent writer, I offer a unique perspective on the entire F1 landscape, free from biases that might cloud the discussion. We dive deep into the exhilarating, frustrating, and captivating facets of the F1 universe. So, regardless of my amateur status, one thing is undeniable: four decades of dedicated F1 fandom have forged strong opinions worth exploring!

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