Bosses, drivers, marring Ferrari charge
Cesare Fiorio, who preceded Jean Todt's ultra-successful reign at the Maranello team, said that even though the car failed within sight of victory for Felipe Massa in Hungary, the technical department is not Ferrari's main issue.
"I suspect the Ferrari is still the best car but it is being spoiled by errors from the command post and by the drivers," he told Switzerland's Motorsport Aktuell.
69-year-old Fiorio, most recently involved with Minardi in 2000, also has another piece of advice for the team he led at the end of the 80s and early 90s.
"Ferrari need to decide on who to put the money on — Massa or Raikkonen," he said.
Appointing a number one driver for the remaining seven races of 2008 would be a difficult decision, however, given that Kimi Raikkonen leads his teammate Felipe Massa by just 3 points.
In a survey conducted by the Italian sports daily La Gazzetta dello Sport, 56 per cent of the readers believe Ferrari should back the Finn.
However, the reigning world champion, Raikkonen, is currently struggling with his F2008, particularly in qualifying.
"Kimi seems to have the same trouble as Heidfeld in getting the car going for a fast lap," said Marc Surer, a grand prix driver of the 80s and now a Swiss commentator.
Surer wonders if motivation is also a problem for Raikkonen, 28.
"He has been champion already. Sometimes it appears he wants to watch rather than race," the Swiss said.
Brazil's Massa, meanwhile, observes that Raikkonen occasionally gets his 2008 car working well for a single lap.
"Four times out of five I can get the tires into the correct temperature window," he explains to Auto Motor und Sport.
"With Kimi it is more like one in five. But when he does it, he is really quick," Massa said.