With Ferrari announcing an extension of Felipe Massa's contract to 2010, all the rumors of an Alonso move to the red team have gone silent. GrandPrix dot com have not completely given up hope but they do admit that a lot of money will have to change hands before Massa can be moved from his seat now. Personally, I never thought there was much chance of Alonso going to Ferrari anyway.
Kimi Raikkonen
But there is more to the announcement than meets the eye, however. If the rumor mill is correct that a power struggle behind the scenes continues between Jean Todt and Luca di Montezemolo, the fact that Massa is being retained is an indication that Todt has won the latest round, at least. It was said that Montezemolo wanted Alonso and Todt wanted to keep Massa; rumor even had Todt, Massa and Nicholas Todt, Massa's manager, departing for Toyota if Alonso were employed.
Perhaps more interesting than all this, however, is what it means for Ross Brawn. If Todt is winning the battle to remain as team boss at Ferrari, there is no room for Brawn, who has said that he will only return if given that role. Significantly, there is absolutely no news on the progress of Brawn's talks with Ferrari and this could be the reason. If Todt gets his way, Ross is applying for a job that is already taken.
Not that Brawn will be short of job offers; Honda would love to have him and many other teams would line up for his services, I'm sure. McLaren will be a bit short on the personnel side now that Mike Coughlan has effectively excluded himself from the team and, with a bit of shuffling about, room could be found for Ross. It comes at a time when Ron Dennis will be looking for a break from his responsibilities after a year of the most severe stress and pressure; I can see him taking a back seat and letting Ross run the team while Martin Whitmarsh handles company matters. One thing is for sure - if that ever happens, don't expect Ross to sit back and take any of Mosley's nonsense lying down!
But to return to Ferrari: if Todt remains at the helm of the racing team, it will be a matter of no change is all change. The new appointments will settle in and the Ferrari for the next several years will emerge. We have seen already this year how personnel changes have affected the car's reliability and without Ross Brawn in charge, that will only get worse. Much is said of Jean Todt's importance to the triumvirate that gave Ferrari its success in the Schumacher years but I, for one, am unconvinced.
The winning machine that the Ferrari team became was the result of a talented group that has been broken up. Michael himself was probably the most important part of that group but Brawn, Rory Byrne and (dare I say it?) even Nigel Stepney were essential ingredients too. Todt was merely lucky in that it all happened on his watch and we are seeing now that he was not nearly as essential as we had imagined.
The one person that I feel sorry for in all this is Kimi Raikkonen. Having broken with the team that nurtured his talent and allowed him to show his capabilities, he has joined what should have been his passport to the world championship. But the edifice crumbles already and the likelihood is that, if Kimi does not manage the almost impossible by becoming champion in Brazil this coming weekend, he will not get another shot at it for many a year. It seems a cruel fate that the one driver without a political nerve in his body should be undermined and betrayed by politics in the end.
Kimi Raikkonen
But there is more to the announcement than meets the eye, however. If the rumor mill is correct that a power struggle behind the scenes continues between Jean Todt and Luca di Montezemolo, the fact that Massa is being retained is an indication that Todt has won the latest round, at least. It was said that Montezemolo wanted Alonso and Todt wanted to keep Massa; rumor even had Todt, Massa and Nicholas Todt, Massa's manager, departing for Toyota if Alonso were employed.
Perhaps more interesting than all this, however, is what it means for Ross Brawn. If Todt is winning the battle to remain as team boss at Ferrari, there is no room for Brawn, who has said that he will only return if given that role. Significantly, there is absolutely no news on the progress of Brawn's talks with Ferrari and this could be the reason. If Todt gets his way, Ross is applying for a job that is already taken.
Not that Brawn will be short of job offers; Honda would love to have him and many other teams would line up for his services, I'm sure. McLaren will be a bit short on the personnel side now that Mike Coughlan has effectively excluded himself from the team and, with a bit of shuffling about, room could be found for Ross. It comes at a time when Ron Dennis will be looking for a break from his responsibilities after a year of the most severe stress and pressure; I can see him taking a back seat and letting Ross run the team while Martin Whitmarsh handles company matters. One thing is for sure - if that ever happens, don't expect Ross to sit back and take any of Mosley's nonsense lying down!
But to return to Ferrari: if Todt remains at the helm of the racing team, it will be a matter of no change is all change. The new appointments will settle in and the Ferrari for the next several years will emerge. We have seen already this year how personnel changes have affected the car's reliability and without Ross Brawn in charge, that will only get worse. Much is said of Jean Todt's importance to the triumvirate that gave Ferrari its success in the Schumacher years but I, for one, am unconvinced.
The winning machine that the Ferrari team became was the result of a talented group that has been broken up. Michael himself was probably the most important part of that group but Brawn, Rory Byrne and (dare I say it?) even Nigel Stepney were essential ingredients too. Todt was merely lucky in that it all happened on his watch and we are seeing now that he was not nearly as essential as we had imagined.
The one person that I feel sorry for in all this is Kimi Raikkonen. Having broken with the team that nurtured his talent and allowed him to show his capabilities, he has joined what should have been his passport to the world championship. But the edifice crumbles already and the likelihood is that, if Kimi does not manage the almost impossible by becoming champion in Brazil this coming weekend, he will not get another shot at it for many a year. It seems a cruel fate that the one driver without a political nerve in his body should be undermined and betrayed by politics in the end.