The storied halls of Maranello should be echoing with the triumphant roar of a championship challenge. Instead, the season became a cruel comedy of errors for Scuderia Ferrari, leaving a trail of shattered hopes and profound disappointment among the global Tifosi. The question is no longer if Ferrari has failed, but why. And the answer, according to an emotional and devastating analysis from within the fanbase, is a systemic, multi-layered disaster stemming not from bad luck, but from a fundamental breakdown of trust, a betrayal of engineering principles, and a toxic culture nurtured by corporate hubris.
This is the definitive, unflinching breakdown of the 13 reasons why the most iconic team in motor racing has collapsed, pointing the finger not at the drivers, but at the very heart of the organization.
The Great Technical Betrayal: A Concept Killed by Ego
The seeds of failure were sown in a decision that defied logic: the complete overhaul of a car concept that had shown genuine promise. The previous chassis finished the season as a genuine contender, winning races and fighting for podiums, a late-blooming beast. Yet, Ferrari chose to discard this progress in favor of an entirely new design, driven by a corporate promise that it would be “much faster”. This was an act of extreme arrogance, believing they could perfect a radical new machine in a mere offseason.
The result was catastrophic. The new concept was inconsistent to the point of being dangerous, with existing issues exacerbated into race-ending problems. The crucial braking system became “much more substantial” in its failure, forcing drivers into a debilitating cycle of constant “lift and coast” to simply manage the car. The suspension was described as “cooked”. While on rare occasions the car proved blindingly quick, this speed came at the cost of being utterly untrustworthy, making victory an impossibility when the team had to consistently manage component failure. Ferrari traded a good, evolving platform for a high-risk, high-ego roll of the dice, and lost everything.
The responsibility for this high-stakes blunder lands heavily on Team Principal Fred Vasseur. While Vasseur initially brought a fresh wave of competence and improved strategy, his tenure saw a dramatic fall-off. As upgrades failed to keep pace with rivals like McLaren and Mercedes, the cracks began to show. Vasseur’s ultimate error was sanctioning the car concept change—a move he defended by claiming it would suit both Charles Leclerc (who likes an edgy car) and Lewis Hamilton (who prefers a stable car). This attempt to please two masters with one machine resulted in a chassis that was “impossible to turn with”, pleasing no one.
Worse than the mistake itself is the subsequent lack of accountability. Vasseur’s once analytical and sure-footed rhetoric devolved into insecure excuses, blaming “bad luck” and “external factors,” refusing to acknowledge team mistakes, and even “licking the boot of Ferrari leadership”. This managerial shift, from honest builder to corporate apologist, is seen as one of the most destructive forces currently crippling the team.
The Corporate Cancer and the Exodus of Talent
The deep rot at Ferrari stems from its corporate masters: Chairman John Elkann and CEO Benedetto Vigna. These men are portrayed as typical businessmen who do not understand, or even care about, the product they own. Their focus is solely on money and image, viewing the F1 team as little more than a prestigious advertising platform and a source of guaranteed income (Ferrari famously receives a bonus every year simply for participating since 1950).
This disconnect creates a poisonous environment. Elkann and Vigna are accused of being “ghouls” who veto beneficial decisions that do not align with their corporate philosophy, which often favors Italian sentiment or image over raw engineering potential.
This corporate pressure and lack of technical understanding led directly to one of the most painful losses of the season: the exodus of key engineering talent. Top engineers, such as Enrico Cardile, left the team because they were denied the autonomy they needed to do their work effectively. Everything, it is asserted, must be cleared by the higher-ups, stifling innovation and creativity. When the new car failed, the team reportedly resorted to the typical “blame the last guy” routine, scapegoating the departing Cardile for a chassis he no longer had control over.
This systemic flaw explains why rivals like McLaren are pulling away. McLaren gave their engineers freedom and trust, allowing them to rise up and run away with success. It also sheds light on the stunning revelation that legendary designer Adrian Newey chose Aston Martin over a move to Ferrari, despite reportedly having a long-held desire to work with the Scuderia and Lewis Hamilton. Newey, it is asserted, knew Ferrari was “just not worth it” in its current state of corporate oppression.
Strategic Scars and Unrealistic Expectations
The deep-seated issues are reflected in the team’s chronic strategic failures. The Melbourne Grand Prix became a definitive, painful highlight reel of incompetence. With rain falling and 95% of the field pitting for wet tires, Ferrari made the baffling, high-risk decision to keep their cars out, desperately hoping for a Safety Car or Red Flag. When the Safety Car did arrive, their delay meant they dropped straight to the bottom of the points positions. This was not bad luck; this was a fundamental failure of judgment and strategic timing that killed the team’s hope for the season on the very first race weekend.
Even the high-profile signing of Lewis Hamilton, while a major coup for the brand’s image, is questioned as a strategic necessity. The critique is not of Hamilton’s talent, but of the immense financial cost. “Couldn’t we have used those funds elsewhere, like, you know, building a good car?” The move sacrificed the continuity of Carlos Sainz, a driver whose presence could have been justified if keeping him meant dedicating all resources to fixing the inherent car design issues. Instead, Ferrari paid a premium for prestige, only to put their superstar in a fundamentally flawed machine.
Underpinning the current malaise is the ghost of the “Dream Team”. The era of Michael Schumacher, Jean Todt, and Ross Brawn set an unrealistic expectation for Ferrari success. That team won because of a little thing called freedom and collaboration. They were a unified front. Today’s Ferrari is described as “multiple units that are really tiny and ineffective,” stifled by corporate interference. It is asserted that if the current leadership had been in charge then, Todt would have been sacked, Brawn’s work restricted, and the Dream Team would have never existed.
The leadership void was created by the death of the former Chairman, Sergio Marchionne. Marchionne, despite his flaws, was a realist who cared about the brand and went out of his way to solve problems. His passing led to the appointment of John Elkann, marking the definitive shift from leadership focused on winning races to leadership focused on managing a luxury brand’s image.
Finally, the arrogance of the team’s ego is cited as a contributing factor. The belief that the Scuderia is “too big to fail” because of its budget, facilities, and historic aura blinds the leadership to the necessity of sustained, modern engineering excellence.
The season was a painful, eye-opening experience for the Tifosi, proving that the most severe breakdowns in a race team happen not on the track, but in the boardroom. The 13 reasons illuminate a path of self-sabotage, where the love of image, money, and corporate control have usurped the pure, fundamental joy of competitive racing, leaving loyal fans to face yet another year of “sick jokes” while they wait for the inevitable next failure. The hope for the future remains, but it is a hope tinged with the weary knowledge that until Elkann and Vigna resign, the corporate cancer will continue to devour the heart of the Scuderia.
