Todt - as motivated as ever

Ferrari launch, Maranello -- It was down to the Director of Sport Management, Jean Todt, to call the drivers to the stage to unveil the new single-seater: "This is a very important moment and I feel particularly emotional in revealing the name of ...

Ferrari launch, Maranello -- It was down to the Director of Sport Management, Jean Todt, to call the drivers to the stage to unveil the new single-seater: "This is a very important moment and I feel particularly emotional in revealing the name of the car because it has remained a mystery to everybody until now."

The F2003-GA was then uncovered by official Ferrari drivers in front of the lenses of the tens of assembled cameramen and was illuminated by a barrage of popping flashguns.

The new Ferrari F2003-GA.

Photo by Ferrari Media Center.

"This really is a beautiful vehicle," pronounced Todt, "Rory Byrne even stated that this is probably the most beautiful produced since the mid-nineties. But it is not only beautiful; this single-seater is the fruit of intense collaboration, the whole group shared the same vision in believing in the car, seeing as that both on paper as in the workshop, it has shown superior power compared to the F2002. It is also for this reason that we are anxious to see it on the track."

"This is the tenth time that I find myself here presenting a new single-seater. The years go by but we have the same motivation as a team that has not won for ages. We have managed to create an internally united group that is also open to outsiders; it is one with common objectives. What unites us is team spirit, great humility but also enormous respect for all our competitors."

Naturally, he could not go without commenting on the new, innovative rules that this Formula 1 season will bring. "This year there will be a number of new regulations, but we consider these to be interesting. We will work hard to adapt, but the final goal of the reduction of costs is important for us, even if we don't see immediate results."

"The objectives are clear," concluded Todt. "We don't expect to be able to win 15 races this year, because that would be presumptuous, but we want to remain where we are: our competitors would not like to see Ferrari in the lead, but we will do all we can to maintain our pole position."