Luca D' Slams The Little Guys

[MG]

Is this just the continuation of the long running spat between Ferrari and Jean Marie Ballestre,  errrr, I mean Max Mosley?

Ferrari has again lambasted the new teams bringing up the rear of the Formula 1 grid – with the company's president Luca di Montezemolo arguing that they are so far off the pace that they should not be allowed to compete in grands prix.

Fernando Alonso lost time lapping slower traffic at two crucial stages in the Canadian Grand Prix, arguably costing him a potential victory.

First he encountered Jarno Trulli's Lotus while lead on the in-lap before his second pit stop – ensuring that he emerged behind eventual race winner Lewis Hamilton – and later he lost second place to Jenson Button after being badly held up by the Hispania of Karun Chandhok.

Montezemolo feels the slowest cars are now mobile chicanes for the front-runners and should not be competing in the sport's top echelon.

"In modern F1 races cars with GP2 levels of performance shouldn't be allowed to participate – they are supposed to race on Sunday mornings," Montezemolo was quoted as saying by Gazzetta dello Sport.

"Our car had the pace to win. I hope that in future there are no more errors with lapped traffic which work to our disadvantage, because we've already suffered from that."

After last Sunday's race Chandhok insisted the new teams' drivers are doing their best to stay out of the leaders' way, but said it had been particularly difficult because of the track conditions and heavy tyre degradation in Montreal.

"It was a nightmare because there are marbles off-line and everyone's on the limit with tyres, so everybody is struggling," said the Indian rookie.

"Quicker guys are coming up behind, and we're battling just to hang on.

"To try and move out of their way is a big nightmare.

"I'm sure we upset a few people, but what can we do? We do the best job we can."

Ferrari's criticism of F1's new teams has been a familiar refrain.

In May last year it warned that the loss of manufacturer outfits and an influx of small independent squads risked turning debasing F1, and it has since poured scorn on the new entrants in several articles on its website.

Montezemolo argues that allowing the major teams to field three cars would be a better way of ensuring a full grid than enticing new private teams.

[Otto Puzzell]

Hamilton and Button lapped the slower cars... 

[DeAutogids.nl]

I wonder what he makes of Massa's move then... Which was kind of the exact reverse of what Alonso did