Luca di Montezemolo announces departure from Ferrari

After 23 long years and several more spent by the side of Enzo Ferrari, Luca di Montezemolo (above, right) has announced his departure as the Chairman of Ferrari.

Just last weekend, ahead of the Italian Grand Prix, Montezemolo revealed he would stay on at Ferrari for another three more years and see out his contract with the Italian automaker.

However, just three days after the conclusion of Grand Prix at the automaker's home turf, Montezemolo announced he would be stepping down on the 13^th of October, the same day parent company Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) - a new company created out of a corporate reorganisation - is slated to be listed publicly on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE).

Montezemolo will be succeeded by Sergio Marchionne, CEO of FCA. Montezemolo's sudden departure represents a key change for the Italian automaker but one that has been on the horizon for a while. For some time Montezemolo has been unhappy with Fiat's planned vision over the direction of the brand and has often clashed with Marchionne over the future direction of the brand.

While Marchionne planned to increase production of the cars and price them slightly lower to generate more sales, Montezemolo was keen to preserve the exclusiveness of the brand name.

Montezemolo had also faced criticism from Marchionne over Ferrari's lack of success in Formula One, following a drought of championship titles since 2008. And it is believed to be another reason the Fiat board has decided to expel Montezemolo.

The Scuderia Ferrari Formula One team fared poorly at Monza last Sunday, with Fernando Alonso retiring with issues to his hybrid system and Kimi Raikkonen finishing the race in ninth.

Montezemolo has been with Ferrari since 1973 and turned the struggling road car business into a profitable unit when he became chairman in 1991.

Under Montezemolo's tenure, Ferrari's revenue increased 10-fold and sales volume tripled as the Italian family business expanded over the globe and grew into one of the world's most powerful brands.

It is believed Marchionne's appointment as Ferrari chairman isn't temporary, and that he had no intention of replacing Ferrari's Chief Executive Amedeo Felisa.

With his departure, Montezemolo gains a €26.95 million (S$44.1 million) severance deal in two payouts - a lump sum payment of €13.25 million (S$21.64 million) at the end of January next year and an extra €13.71 million (S$22.39 million) payable in 20 years. Montezemolo held a pres conference yesterday, for the last time, at Maranello with incoming boss Marchionne.

"Winning is essential for Ferrari and I have no doubt we are capable of doing that. We will do all it takes, also in terms of our resources, to reach this objective," Marchionne told the press yesterday.