Ferrari’s influence is being felt all around Formula One — except on the track

Resul Rehimov | Anadolu Agency | Getty Images

Kimi Raikkonen of Ferrari competes on track during the 4th round of Formula One World Championship Azerbaijan Grand Prix.

It’s been nearly a decade since Ferrari last drove its way to a Formula One Drivers’ Championship, but the iconic Italian brand remains one of motorsports biggest assets.

Ferrari could only look on and wonder what might have been during the 2018 season, as a combination of its own errors and the superior driving from Mercedes rival Lewis Hamilton meant the individual race honors went elsewhere.

It is the only team that has been competing in Formula One continuously since the championship was launched in 1950, and it is richly rewarded for doing so.

Ferrari’s importance to Formula 1 is evident in particular through a unique “Long Standing Team” payment of more than $62 million it receives every year from the sports owners Liberty Media. That’s on top of a Constructors Championship Bonus of around $38 million, which is also given out to the teams of Mercedes, Red Bull and McLaren.

That means Ferrari makes over $100 million per year, even before a single car reaches the start line. With two Grand Prix remaining in the 2018 season that has only translated into just six wins from a possible nineteen.

The Maranello-based company has never been shy is voicing its objections as part of maintaining its status on the grid, despite not winning races. Prior to his death in July 2018, the former head of Ferrari, Sergio Marchionne had been against proposals by Liberty Media to impose new car restrictions and a cost cap, even threatening on occasion to walk away from the sport.