Ferrari myth busted by Andrea Stella in McLaren culture comparison

Andrea Stella said Ferrari and McLaren are “less different than people think” in terms of how they operate, with Ferrari having long been seen as a unique team in the sport.

Ferrari is Formula 1’s longest-serving team on the current grid and is held in sometimes mythical status by its fans, with the team held under particular scrutiny in Italy – as the Scuderia operates as the country’s de facto ‘national team’ as well as being one of the most popular teams in the world.

Ferrari and McLaren ‘less different than people think’ – Andrea Stella

Having worked at Ferrari for 15 years, Stella is well qualified to offer insight into how the Scuderia operates by comparison to other teams.

Having been a performance engineer for Michael Schumacher and Kimi Raikkonen, Stella subsequently became a race engineer for Raikkonen and Fernando Alonso before moving across to McLaren in 2015.

Almost a decade later, he is now team principal at the Woking-based constructor – and while there are likely still cultural differences between the two teams, Stella explained that, when it comes to it, the two teams operate in a similar way on a number of levels.

“Interesting question, it could be expanded and it would require some time, but in reality, they are, I would say, less different than people think,” Stella told the Box Box Box podcast when asked how different McLaren and Ferrari are as places to work.

“You know, like the way in which you try and generate the speed in the car, the way in which you go racing, the operations, the logistics, the technical aspects, they are actually based on the same fundamentals.”

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Having been under the stewardship of Enzo Ferrari for so long after he founded the Scuderia, the team retains a family minority owner through Enzo’s son Piero, who holds a 10% stake in the company to this day.

Given the reputation the Scuderia’s founder had as a racer with winning at the core of what he worked towards, Stella was asked how the F1 great would likely have felt about his move across to McLaren – and he admitted that it would likely have been a mixed set of emotions.

“I think after 15 years at Ferrari, probably his first reaction would be upset, and he would say, ‘What is this guy doing there?’” Stella replied.

“But I think his second thought would be, hopefully, a little proud that somebody that grew up at Ferrari – ultimately, most of what I learned, I learned at Ferrari – and then I was able to contribute to the growth of another team, which is the reason why he would be upset.

“But I think he would be proud that Ferrari is such a great school, and actually you go somewhere else and you can contribute, so I think he would flip between these two kind of feelings.”

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