Ferrari: KERS is Vital to Win Championship

Although they became the first F1 team to launch its 2009-spec machinery this winter, Ferrari are expecting plenty of work ahead of their 60th campaign in the Great Circle. As revealed by team principal Stefano Domenicali himself, Ferrari are not sure if they'll develop their Kinetic Energy Recovery System in time for the Australian Grand Prix.

However, Domenicali underlined the importance of unveiling their new car earlier than the other teams, as the first testing session of the year will see them try out the new technology on track. He also stressed that efficiency is the key word in the mechanics' minds when figuring out how the KERS unit will make the car more competitive for the 2009 season. However, he couldn't help citicize the introduction of the new technology in times of economic regression such as these.

"First of all I want to make a political consideration as far as the KERS is concerned: our position, which we discussed with other teams, is, that in a moment, when one has to reduce costs, the introduction of such a system is a contradiction in terms."

“When we realize that the performance guaranteed by KERS is up to expectations, then it is our task to use it. This is our goal if we want to win the world championship. Today's presentation is important for us, because this is the first set of tests (for KERS) on a race track. I imagine that we will have problems, the typical problems linked to a race track, and we will have to solve them in a different way,” said Domenicali at the unveiling of the new Ferrari F60 earlier today, at Maranello.

“Tests are reduced, we are down to 15,000km and there are no tests during the season, so we have to be as efficient as possible. We will have to use the testing benches a lot more than in the past. I expect to see problems and issues,” added the Italian official.

Having so many new coordinates to think about ahead of the 2009 season – the introduction of KERS, new slick tires and completely new aerodynamics – has also led to the conclusion that making it 3 in a row in the constructors' classification will be tougher than ever for the Scuderia.

“Our aim is to rank among the first teams. We have always shown this over the years, but this year our project will be more complicated and more difficult. It means we will have to face this season with humbleness, without resting on our laurels... Life is tough, but when the going gets tough the tough get going,” added Domenicali.