Information about Ferrari

History of Ferrari in F1

The Ferrari team first competed in Formula One in 1950 and they have won an impressive 209 races. In their second season in 1951, Jose Froilan Gonzalez celebrated Ferrari’s first Grand Prix success and the following year, went on to win the drivers’ title two seasons in a row. Various drivers claim victory in the exciting Ferrari throughout the years, with John Surtees remaining the only man to win the championship on a motorbike as well as a racing car. In the late 90’s and early 00’s, Michael Schumacher and Ferrari dominated the world of Formula One, before Schumacher’s retirement in 2006 with a record breaking seven championship titles to his name. 2007 was rocked by claims that McLaren had confidential data belonging to Ferrari and were later awarded the constructors’ title after McLaren were disqualified. Kimi Raikkonen also took the drivers’ title, before team mate Filipe Massa just misses out on the 2008 award to McLaren’s Lewis Hamilton. Ferrari retained the constructors’ title with a remarkable 21 point lead.

Ferrari information

The team principal is Stefano Domenicali and the team is based in Maranello, Italy. Ferrari race with the Bridgestone Potenza tyres and use a Ferrari Type 056 engine and has successfully earned 203 pole positions. Filipe Massa and Kimi Raikkonen will be the main drivers for the 2009 campaign and Ferrari will be looking to retain the constructors’ title and win back the drivers title from rivals McLaren.

Technical details and statistics

Ferrari have modified the exhaust exits on the side pods of the F60 chassis and to boost down force, they have redesigned the nose cone to be longer with a higher central section to increase the amount of air flow underneath. The team has also minimised drag with the addition of channeling vertical fin on the end plate to direct the air flow away from the front tyres. The rear view mirror mountings are attached to the lower section of the bodywork, which creates a vertical turning vane that was originally introduced by BMW Sauber in 2008.

Base: Maranello, Italy
Team principal: Stefano Domenicali
Main drivers: Kimi Raikkonen and Felipe Massa
Engine: Ferrari Type 056
Chassis: F60
Tyres: Bridgestone Potenza
Debut F1 season: 1950
World Championship titles: 16
Highest race finish: 1st (x209)
Pole positions: 203
Fastest lap times: 218

Driver no.1: Kimi Raikkonen

Kimi Raikkonen was born in Espoo and became the Finnish karting champion in his debut season in 1998. He went on to compete in numerous races from the winter Formula Renault Championship to the European Formula Renault Championship and eventually made his F1 debut for Sauber in 2001. After one season, the Fin joined McLaren and won his first Grand Prix in Malaysia in 2003. After failing to win a race in 2006, Raikkonen signed for Ferrari where he claimed his first championship title in 2007 and he has signed to stay with the team until the end of 2010.

Statistics
Nationality: Finnish
Date of birth: 17/10/1979
World Championship titles: 1
Number of Grands Prix won: 17
Pole positions: 16
Career points: 531
Podiums: 57

Driver no.2: Filipe Massa

The Brazilian was born in Sao Paulo and started his professional racing career in 1998 with fifth position in the Brazilian Formula Chevrolet Championship, before going on to win the following year. In 2000, Massa claimed victory at the European and Italian Formula Renault Series and continued on to win the Formula 3000 Euro-Series in 2001. He made his debut in F1 in 2002 with the Sauber team and went on to become a test driver for Ferrari in 2003, before returning to Sauber the following season. He joined Ferrari in 2006 and only narrowly missed out on the 2008 crown by a single point.

Statistics
Nationality: Brazilian
Date of birth: 25/04/1981
World Championship titles: 0
Number of Grands Prix won: 11
Pole positions: 15
Career points: 298
Podiums: 27