Ferrari Vice-Chairman Criticises F1 For Keeping Technology ‘Secret’

Piero Ferrari also hit out at Formula One for not doing more to highlight the speed of the cars for fans watching the action on TV.

Piero Ferrari on F1 - Formula1news.co.uk

Piero Ferrari, vice-chairman of the Italian supercar brand which shares his surname, has slammed Formula One for spending hundreds of millions of dollars on developing technology, only to keep it secret.

In a Sunday interview, Ferrari questioned the point of developing this technology if it is seldom applied off the track.

READ: Ferrari Wary Of Simulated Gains Not Translating Into Better Speed

“Recently I spoke about it with Bernie Ecclestone, with whom I occasionally talk on the phone. Formula 1 must be a sport that returns to offering a show that entertains enthusiasts,” Pietro Ferrari, the only living son of Enzo Ferrari, told the Italian edition of Motorsport.com over the weekend.

“We have very fast single-seaters with very advanced technology. However, nobody knows about it.

“Of course, because some ideas are covered by patents. But we spend scary amounts of money and then keep everything secret. Explain to me what the point is.

“With the effects of the pandemic, you can only follow F1 on television.

“We are running the fastest single-seaters in history, but the images we get from TV can’t give you the sensations you get when you are on the track and what you feel is real. What people and fans get is something different.

“These are F1 cars that go over 330 km/h, but watching them on video you don’t get the feeling of a different speed compared to a Formula 2 race. I’m not against technological research, quite the contrary,” he added.

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Continuing, Ferrari indicated that he believes the introduction of a $145 million budget cap this upcoming season is a positive development for Formula One, though he added that it’s important to keep other areas of spending under control.

“We still have to work on the engines, which still cost the same as they used to, although they are limited to three units per driver per season,” Ferrari added.

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