Sebastian Vettel may be the next high profile member to leave Ferrari, doing so at the end of 2019, former team manager Romolo Tavoni has suggested.
The four-time world champion is looking to put the disappointment of two consecutive championship defeats to Lewis Hamilton behind him and go again with the Scuderia this season.
However, given the similar story of errors by team and driver largely gifting the Briton the title on both occasions, should there be a repeat again Tavoni believes a decision will need to be made.
“I sincerely believe that the departure of [former team boss Maurizio] Arrivabene is just the first shock,” he told Italy’s Autosprint.
“Let’s not forget that Vettel did a bad championship in 2018. I believe the immediate future of Ferrari rests on the situation with Vettel. We saw some unacceptable mistakes, and now we just have to see what will happen.
“In other words, Ferrari has a new boss but it is also necessary that Vettel, the spearhead on the track, regains his head.”
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The promotion of young blood in Charles Leclerc and a new man in charge in Mattia Binotto could make the difference in Sebastian re-finding his best.
But on the decision to install Binotto as team boss, Tavoni does think another cog must be put in place to achieve the optimum.
“He is a very high-level engineer, however, his new role involves maintaining relationships with the other teams, dealing with politics and relating to Liberty Media,” he commented.
“Overall it will be a very complex and very burdensome task, so I think that he will be helped by someone and that this appointment will be very important for the success of his term.”