Green Races Red

When Fiorano was built in the early seventies it was way ahead of its time. In fact, Ferrari remains the only team with its own private test facility. It is extremely useful to be able to run the car whenever it suits the team rather than having to book a circuit and then travel to the track in question. Fiorano is so narrow that if you make the slightest error or deviation, it is exaggerated and shows immediately. The tifosi will stand there all day. On one occasion, because of problems, we managed just one lap, which was in the dark. And yet the fans waited from dawn to beyond dusk just to see it. There is nowhere else where that sort of thing can happen. It’s unreal.

I was thinking about the pressure induced by all that attention while I was flying from Japan to Australia. Tokyo had made the perfect stopping place en route to Melbourne: eleven hours from London then ten hours to Sydney and a short hop from there. It was the perfect split. I had time to reflect on everything that had been going wrong.

I knew it was going to be very difficult for the team but, personally, I was not that concerned. If I am criticised, it usually goes straight over the top of my head. If I’m not doing a proper job, I am aware of it. I don’t need someone to tell me. I know when I am wrong and I know when I’m right, and I don’t care what anyone else thinks. On the other hand, the Italian temperament is quite soft. They are quite susceptible to criticism and I knew there would be a lot of that flying around in Melbourne.

I really thought the whole Ferrari team was about to be massively embarrassed.