Ferrari team boss Mattia Binotto has revealed he expressed a desire to leave his post as technical director last year.
The Swiss-born veteran of the Scuderia has been largely credited for the team’s performance in recent seasons but rumours of a move to Mercedes swirled for much of 2018.
They coincided with reports of a feud between Binotto and his predecessor Maurizio Arrivabene over the direction of Ferrari.
“I thought I was no longer in a position to do my job well, and I made it known,” he told Italy’s Corriere della Sera.
“This was not only a difficulty of mine but also related to the whole group because if a technical director does not work at his best, everything is reflected in those he coordinates.”
Binotto then confirmed interest from other teams without being specific because of his vast F1 experience, however…
“I’m a Ferrari fan since I was a child. I’ve never thought of another team except for Ferrari,” he added.
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Opening up on his relationship with Arrivabene, who he replaced at the beginning of this year, Binotto admitted disagreements but played down their severity.
“Working here for 25 years I was lucky enough to also live glorious moments with [Jean] Todt, [Ross] Brawn and [Michael] Schumacher, and then with Stefano Domenicali,” he noted.
“I have always learned from everyone, even from Maurizio and I thank him for this. The personal relationship has always been good. Never a fight.
“The difficulties involved the vision, the management of the group or a race weekend. We had different points of view.”
