Marchionne vows to help Monza save F1 race

Jun.12 (GMM) Sergio Marchionne has vowed to help Monza keep its fabled Italian grand prix.

Although an important home race for Ferrari, it has however been said that the Maranello marque would not mind if Monza leaves the F1 calendar, as it would open the door for a race at its own Mugello circuit.

But Marchionne, the new Ferrari president, said in Canada last weekend that: "For my part, Monza will not fail.

"If they have problems then we should talk to Bernie (Ecclestone)," he added.

F1 chief Ecclestone has warned that Monza must pay more if it wants to stay on the calendar, but a meeting with race chiefs at Monza recently resulted in stalemate.

Marchionne, however, said he wants to help.

"If I consider the prospects for Monza, I think the race will not be excluded from the championship," he is quoted by Italy's Autosprint.

"If, in order to have this guarantee, we will have to intervene in the negotiations with Ecclestone, we will do that," Marchionne added.

As for this year's Monza race, Marchionne announced that the fabled Autodromo Nazionale in September will be the scene of the next engine update for Ferrari's 2015 car.

"I am satisfied with the hard work the team has already done," he said, "but we must continue to develop the car with constant technical innovations and Monza will be the next key step in the programme."