Oh dear Ferrari. I think you should know that in doing what you just did, you not only severely damaged the image and reputation of Scuderia Ferrari F1; but you also dented the shiny bodywork of the master brand.
I've watched Formula1 every year since I can remember, from the days of Nigel Mansell and Ayton Senna through the dull years of Ferrari-Schumacher dominance to the exciting open season we have now. Yet I struggle to think of an incident that has made me feel so down on a competing brand. (They told Massa to let Alonso overtake him and win the race despite Massa overtaking him and holding the lead for 3/4 of the race)
Even last year when Renault were found guilty of cheating, it was clear that a few people took the decisions and they were punished accordingly. Even when Ferrari did the same thing to Rubens Barrichello in 2002, that wasn't as bad (it was still legal to do it for a start).
The difference here is that we know it isn't allowed anymore. We know that it may go on across the pit lane but it shouldn't. To see the biggest name in F1 so blatantly and coldly breaking the rules was just mind numbingly angering for fans.
Yes you want to win the championships, but the whole point of winning is to boost the brand; if you do it by cheating and damaging the brand, then what is the point?
Given this came a year to the day that Felipe Massa was nearly killed in his Ferrari, after which he made a brave and hard fought effort to get back into racing and work for the team; to deny him that symbolic first recovery victory was heartless. For a brand that is so much about soul and passion to be so cold and cruel in this way is staggering.
Ferrari need to learn a lesson quickly. To do this again would be to strike a huge huge blow against the master brand. I got through the boredom and arrogance of the Schumacher years, but this has really hurt the way I look at Ferrari and their cars.
Pic from www.moonbattery.com
