APRIL 11, 2017

Marchionne not commenting on future post 2019

Sergio Marchionne has refused to comment on reports he will stay in charge at Ferrari beyond 2019.

Sergio Marchionne has refused to comment on reports he will stay in charge at Ferrari beyond 2019.

During the Shanghai weekend, reports from Italy suggested the 64-year-old will definitely step down as president of the Ferrari parent Fiat Chrysler.

But other reports claim Marchionne will in fact "stay at Ferrari until at least 2021, even after his planned exit from FCA".

When asked about that, the Italian-Canadian said: "Let's talk about something else."

Indeed, another hot topic is the expiring contracts of both Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen, creating potential instability for Ferrari this year.

But Marchionne was quoted by La Repubblica as insisting: "Not at all. We will solve that too."

There is also the issue of Liberty Media's offer that top teams buy into F1, with Marchionne saying: "We have met with Toto Wolff to evaluate if it is worth it.

"Of course, the opportunity is there. If it makes sense from a financial point of view, we will."

And when told that Formula E might be a good fit for the Alfa Romeo brand, he answered: "Formula E is a good idea for many brands as well, for example Maserati."

(GMM)