The Spanish rider has always stood out for being fast, a tireless fighter and extremely constant in his race pace. However, his best weapon is being the fastest engineer in the world.
It may sound exaggerated, but in a way pilots like the four-time world champion Alain Prost (nicknamed The Professor) or Fernando Alonso they are something like engineers behind the wheel of a Formula 1.
And because of that, they are able to interpret what is happening in and around their car in an exceptional way. That’s what impressed me the most. Massimo Rivola during the six years that he shared a team with the Spanish rider, as he himself has acknowledged in statements to Il Foglio.
«We had many monitors with data in front of us, but often he reached some of the conclusions before us»
«I have never seen anyone read a race like Alonso did. At some point he literally made us feel like idiots on the pit wall, since he knew everything », points out Rivola, who arrived at Ferrari as sports director in 2009, a year before Alonso.
“We had many monitors with data in front of us, but often he reached some of the conclusions before us.. And that he was also doing his work in the car », emphasizes the Italian.
Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz
Massimo Rivola’s career in the Formula 1 has frequently been linked to the search for young talent. Her career in the premier class began in 1998 at Minardi, a team in which she coincided with Alonso during his debut in 2001.
As a result of the purchase of the Faenza team by Red Bull to turn it into Toro Rosso, Rivola remained in the Italian formation until the opportunity arose in the team ferrarito which he moved in 2009 to be its sports director.
Already in 2016, he became director of the Ferrari Driver Academy, where he coincided with another young promise: Charles Leclerc. “I think Charles is superior to other pilots of his generation”points out Massimo Rivola, who knows the Monegasque well.
“Yes, Red Bull signed Max Verstappen, but there he had the opportunity to repeatedly make mistakes. Leclerc was demanded by Ferrari to act immediately at the highest level. It is a much higher pressure », he admits about Leclerc, who after a season at Sauber was promoted to Ferrari.
Rivola also sees in Norris and Russell two potential champions, but there is another driver who always considered a winner. “Lando Norris was a nice surprise last year. I remember taking a very serious look at him when I was 16.. George Russell is another of the drivers who have everything it takes to be a champion.
And that pilot is Carlos Sainzwhom Massimo Rivola wanted to sign for Ferrari already before his Formula 1 debut with Toro Rosso in 2015. “I must admit, Carlos Sainz’s good performances did not surprise me. For a long time I recommended signing him up for our Academy. He has always been very strong, he is fast and intelligent », she concludes.
In 2019, Massimo Rivola left Ferrari to become CEO of Aprilia in MotoGP, a position he currently holds.
Source: Il Foglio
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Photos: Alpine F1 Team | Scuderia Ferrari