27/11/2017
NEWS STORY
Unhappy with the engine regulations for 2021, especially moves to create more standard parts, Ferrari president Sergio Marchionne has already warned that his team will need to re-think its future.
That's before Liberty Media announces its plans to share the prize pot more evenly and scrap the kind of historic bonus that has seen the Italian team walk away with significantly more prize money than the world champions.
Now comes news that Spanish bank Santander is unlikely to renew its partnership with the Italian team which began in 2010 when Fernando Alonso went to Maranello.
At that time, the bank was run by Emilio Botin, a keen fan of F1 and particularly his countryman, Alonso.
Even when Alonso headed to McLaren at the end of 2014, Santander remained on board and over the course of the deal has pumped around £250m into Ferrari's coffers.
Not any more however, for according to El Confidencial, with Botin's daughter Ana now at the helm, Santander is understood to have turned down Ferrari's request for a new deal worth around £35m.
Despite a strong start to the season, the second half of the year saw Ferrari's challenge to Mercedes fade away, leaving the German team to pick up its fourth successive constructors' title.
Indeed, though Alonso finished runner-up in the standings on three occasions, this season marked ten years since Ferrari last won the title.
According to El Confidencial, Santander, which has an annual marketing budget of £400m, may yet remain with Ferrari as a secondary sponsor. However, the reduced fee, combined with the financial changes Liberty intends making will put further pressure on the Italian outfit.