Ferrari boss advises F1 star driver amid rumored jump to Red Bull

Ferrari Formula 1 driver Fernando Alonso celebrated his 32nd birthday yesterday, the day after the Hungarian Grand Prix. With numerous reports stating that the two-time world champion\'s manager, Luis Garcia Abad, was seen talking to Red Bull Racing chief Christian Horner during the race weekend, it has been widely speculated that Alonso could occupy the race seat that Mark Webber will vacate at the end of the season. This was on top of Alonso himself saying unflattering things to the media that didn\'t sit well with the entire Ferrari team.

So, when Ferrari president Luca di Montezomolo called Alonso to greet him on his birthday, he had some advice for his star driver.

\"All the great champions who have driven for Ferrari have always been asked to put the interests of the team above their own,\" Montezemolo supposedly said. \"This is the moment to stay calm, avoid polemics and show humility and determination in making one\'s own contribution, standing alongside the team and its people both at the track and outside it.\"

Montezemolo knows Alonso\'s frustration, though, with Scuderia Ferrari not being able to properly fight for the championship. With nearly a month to go before the next race in Belgium, the Ferrari boss has asked the team to step up its game and become contenders once more.

To emphasize his point, Montezemolo gave each one of the team\'s engineers a knife, inviting them to metaphorically \"put it between their teeth when thinking how to tackle the second half of the season.\" 

Do you think Ferrari--and Alonso--can still fight for the championship this season?

Read Next

First peek: The cover of our annual Green Issue this August 2013