The drama at Ferrari just got messier. Antonello Coletta, who runs Ferrari's endurance racing programme and was seen as the leading in-house candidate to eventually take over from Fred Vasseur, has reportedly turned down repeated offers from Ferrari boss John Elkann and CEO Benedetto Vigna. According to Corriere della Sera, Coletta's been saying no because he knows he doesn't have the experience to run an F1 operation. Fair point, honestly, but there's more to it than just that.

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Here's where it gets interesting. Coletta's watched Ferrari chew through six different team bosses since he joined the company in the late 1990s. He's seen careers burn out left and right at Maranello, and he's not keen on becoming the next cautionary tale. The guy's done an incredible job with Ferrari's endurance programme, steering the team to three straight Le Mans 24 Hours wins between 2023 and 2025. Why risk all that by stepping into the F1 hot seat?

But the really wild bit is what Corriere claims about Vasseur himself. The Italian paper reckons he's absolutely knackered, described as tired and worn out by people close to him. According to the report, Vasseur could actually decide to walk away on his own terms at the end of the season before Ferrari even makes a move. There's also internal criticism over his management style, his perceived closeness to Charles Leclerc, and concerns about his public comments.

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So where does Ferrari go from here? With Coletta off the table, Italian media is naming Jerome D'Ambrosio as a possible interim solution if the team makes a change mid-season. For now, Ferrari's sticking with the official line that Vasseur stays, but Corriere's version paints a picture of a team scrambling for answers with their preferred successor having walked away and their current boss running on fumes.

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The timing couldn't be worse for Ferrari either. They're still not winning championships under Vasseur after four years, and the internal drama is playing out in the Italian press. Whether Vasseur jumps or gets pushed remains to be seen, but it's clear that Maranello's succession plans just got a whole lot more complicated.

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