Ferrari chair’s ‘talk less’ criticism a rallying cry, but should the team first look inwards?

There are several cliches which could be attached to Ferrari chairman John Elkann’s sudden criticism of how its Formula 1 team is performing.

‘The truth hurts’, ‘actions speak louder than words’, ‘do your talking on the track’ – that kind of thing. But in acting as a motivator for the Scuderia’s Formula 1 operation, there is an underlying cut-to-the-chase element to Elkann’s comments which speaks of a wider impatience to get back to winning ways.

What did the Ferrari chairman say in response to recent F1 efforts?

Speaking on Monday at an event looking ahead to the Winter Olympics in Milan, Elkann took aim at the current performance of its Formula 1 outfit, with a potential winless season coming into view.

He defended those working within the team performing at the top of their game, but did not have the same to say about all of the operation. He did not mince his words about the team’s recent double DNF when comparing it to Ferrari’s highly successful World Endurance Championship operation.

“Ferrari wins when it is united, as the WEC results have shown us,” Elkann said.

“When everyone is together, great things can be achieved.

“Brazil was a huge disappointment. In Formula 1, we have mechanics who are always first in performing pit stops. The engineers work to improve the car. The rest is not up to par.

“We have drivers who need to focus on driving, talk less, and we have important races ahead of us, and it is not impossible to finish second.

“This is the most important message coming out of Bahrain: when Ferrari is a team, we win.”

What was Elkann looking to achieve with these Ferrari comments?

It is easy to see the rationale behind Elkann’s words.

The Scuderia’s operation in Hypercars has been incredibly successful in recent years, with its factory team run in conjunction with longstanding sportscar partner, AF Corse.

The indomitable 499P has won at Le Mans three years in a row through Ferrari’s factory team and the satellite AF Corse car and most recently winning the Manufacturers’ Championship in WEC this season. Clearly, that element of the Scuderia’s racing business is riding on the crest of a wave.

In Formula 1, on the other hand, the sport’s most storied and successful team is now without a title of any description for 17 years. The now-departed Carlos Sainz is its most recent race winner in Mexico City last year, more than 12 months ago.

By Ferrari’s standards, with expectation always high in Italy and beyond, that is not good enough.

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With Formula 1’s regulation reset barrelling into view for 2026, the next Ferrari will be hitting the track in a matter of weeks, with Elkann likely using this opportunity not just to critique the current operation, but to look to bring about more of a team mentality that can ultimately prove successful at a critical juncture in Formula 1’s regulation cycle next season.

It was a simple message to staff and drivers at Ferrari: Work together because great things can happen when you do, and remember that performance is what comes first.

While a very different series, its almost-immediate and ongoing WEC success has perhaps highlighted wider shortcomings in Formula 1, especially only been back in the top tier of endurance racing for a short time.

Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc told to ‘talk less’, but should Ferrari look inwards?

In the years since Ferrari’s last F1 title, the calibre of driver has not been short of talent or pedigree, with only 2009’s replacement drivers for the injured Felipe Massa arguably not being up to snuff.

Kimi Raikkonen and Fernando Alonso – two of the very best drivers of the modern era – once formed the team’s line-up, and a four-time World Champion in Sebastian Vettel looked to try his hand at a Ferrari title when Alonso made an ill-fated return to McLaren.

Leclerc, ‘Il Predestinato’ [‘The Predestined One’], arrived to much fanfare and expectation, and when partnered with Sainz actually formed the youngest combined driver line-up in the team’s Formula 1 history.

After that, and even well over a decade without title glory, Ferrari was still able to bring the most statistically successful driver in the history of the sport to the team, so the driving department is unlikely to be an issue here. Ferrari still has a unique allure that no other team has, after all.

Lewis Hamilton himself, though, has admitted on several occasions this season that his first year at Ferrari has not been what he had hoped it to be, with such a long period at Mercedes undoubtedly set to bring its own teething issues.

Now 21 races in, any hurdles should have been cleared, and a driver with Hamilton’s experience and success will have wanted more for himself.

The stories about Ferrari bringing its own unique pressures have been told ad nauseam over the years, but while Hamilton has been open about his struggles this season, it is to his credit that he has not taken a blinkered view to his situation, and has taken encouragement wherever he can.

Similar can be said for Leclerc, who has not just driven well this season but has often taken an optimistic tone in media sessions when looking to break back into the top echelons of Formula 1. Even when admitting the team has not performed well enough, both drivers have steered clear of criticising the team itself, instead looking to see what they can do to help.

While Elkann was clear in looking at the two drivers behind the wheel, the persistent speculation about the Scuderia and interest in Ferrari is such that perhaps Maranello could look at itself to try and plug as many leaks as possible around the team, keep itself to itself, and provide the platform for its drivers to perform.

Elkann’s words also bear a resemblance to then-Alpine CEO Laurent Rossi in 2023, who did not hold back on his own criticism of his team, going further than Elkann in his public remarks.

“We have made a lot of mistakes, too many mistakes, over the weekend,” Rossi said.

“When you compound that relatively lower performance and lack of operational excellence you end up in a difficult position. It makes for a difficult year ahead.

“I need to tackle this, I need the right people to tackle this. I need the team to be aware they need to do that as it’s not up to me – it’s up to them, they have to do it. It’s their responsibility. I hope they make the same diagnosis. I will make it clear to them that this is the diagnosis and they need to fix that.”

With the team’s struggles continuing, Rossi was replaced at Alpine two months later.

Elkann sits in a very different place within the Scuderia’s hierarchy, of course, but if even a recent public declaration of support and a new three-year contract for team principal Fred Vasseur has not stemmed criticism from the very top, this rallying cry from the brand’s chairman could go either way in having the motivational effect he intended – especially if the Scuderia’s 2026 challenger does not hit the heights everyone at Maranello is hoping to achieve.

If this ‘criticise-to-inspire’ approach backfires, one final cliche may be fitting for the tack to take next time: You can catch more flies with honey than with vinegar.

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