Ferrari set to write off season after Monza

Ferrari will write off the 2010 season if the team does not secure a good result at Monza.

That is the announcement of the famous Italian marque’s F1 boss Stefano Domenicali, referring to Fernando Alonso’s 41 point gap to the championship leader with just six races left to run.

"Should Monza go really badly and Red Bull’s lead continues to increase, then on Monday we will begin to use all of our staff and resources for the project of next season’s car," he is quoted by the sports daily Corriere dello Sport.

F1 experts and pundits, including Bernie Ecclestone and Niki Lauda, have recently played down expectations that Alonso will be able to emulate the role formerly played at Ferrari by Michael Schumacher.

Domenicali disagrees: "Alonso reminds me very much of Schumacher.

"Since I’ve been with Ferrari, I have not seen a driver who has as strong a presence in Maranello, and follows all of our activities with the same conviction" as the Spaniard, he added.