Ferrari are set to replace Formula One team boss Maurizio Arrivabene with technical head Mattia Binotto, according to reports in Italy. German four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel could be working under a new boss.Sports daily Gazzetta dello Sport reported on Monday that an announcement could be made by the end of the day, but a team spokesperson said he was not aware of anything imminent.
Arrivabene's position has been the subject of speculation for some time, with reports suggesting Binotto could replace the former Philip Morris marketing chief doing the rounds as far back as October 2017.
Strategic blunders by the team last year only increased the pressure on Arrivabene. Ferrari won six of the 21 races last season but their title challenge disintegrated in the second half of the campaign as rivals Mercedes won both the drivers' and constructors' championships for the fifth consecutive year.
According to motor racing website autosport.com, Arrivabene's ousting had been confirmed by senior sources within the team. The portal also said that chairman John Elkann had decided Binotto was the right man to lead the team forward.
The Ferrari veteran, who has risen through the ranks to technical director and overseen a big step up in engine performance, had also reportedly been a target for rival constructors.
Ferrari's drivers for the 2019 season are four-times world champion Sebastian Vettel, runner-up to Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton last year, and Monaco's Charles Leclerc who has replaced Kimi Raikkonen.
mf/js (Reuters/DPA)
