The paddock is now in full swing. Just a couple more days, and the cars will hit the asphalt of Albert Park for the first time in this new and exciting season. There are countless talking points: the debut of many rookies, including Italian Andrea Kimi Antonelli; Lando Norris’s test of maturity at McLaren; and the all-Red duel at Ferrari.

It is precisely from Maranello that Arturo Merzario begins his careful analysis, speaking in an interview with Italian journalist Mario Salvini for newspaper La Gazzetta dello Sport. Unlike other observers, the experienced former Formula 1 driver highlights potential tensions between Hamilton (who, along with Max Verstappen, “has something more than the others”) and Ferrari’s golden boy, Charles Leclerc, who will have to “avoid being influenced and stay cautious.”

Australia, Ferrari territory: Charles Leclerc immediately up against Lewis Hamilton
“In Melbourne, I even think [Ferrari] could be ahead of everyone,” explains Arturo Merzario. “But it won’t be an absolute value: it’s a very particular GP on an atypical circuit. The real balance will be seen on true tracks. And it will be very interesting.” – the former Ferrari driver pointed out.

The focus immediately shifts to the Lewis Hamilton – Charles Leclerc pairing, as the Monegasque driver will have to face a seven-time Formula 1 world champion starting with the 2025 season: “Last year, Hamilton was a bit hesitant because he knew he was leaving, the team wasn’t competitive enough to win, and they had obviously already placed their bets on George Russell. This year, that won’t be the case. There will be a whole range of attentions around him, which will inevitably translate into advantages, whether by necessity or simply to justify his arrival. ” – the Italian racing driver and motorsport executive explained.

“That’s why everything will be very difficult for Leclerc. He will have to be very good at not letting himself be influenced and, even more so, at maintaining balance. Certain situations might lead him to take more risks than usual. He will have to be careful and do so only when necessary. He must stay calm and seize every opportunity to do better than Lewis.” – concluded Arturo Merzario, who raced in Formula One from 1972 to 1979.

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For some, it was a sudden call, for others the culmination of a career, between those who had lost hope and those who had grown accustomed to a seemingly endless wait. There can be different ways of racing for Ferrari, especially when doing so as a stand-in: different and disparate stories, but all united by the dream of one day wearing the Red, whether for a race or for an entire lifetime.

There are the regulars and then there are them, those called to fill a gap, to take hold of a steering wheel that was intended for others. They, in a completely original way, managed to carve out a dignified adventure in Maranello, knowing they had experienced something coveted by all but denied to many. Occasionally, they also seize the stage, those initially destined for cameo roles, supporting characters, people distant from the limelight: non-lead actors, but splendid performers of a story that, thanks to them, has been able to offer noteworthy scripts. From Ignazio Giunti to Oliver Bearman, from Gilles Villeneuve to Mika Salo, here is the roundup of those who raced for Ferrari as luxury benchwarmers.

OLD HABITS

If we take away roughly the first 20 years of Formula 1, a period in which racing with multiple cars from race to race by changing drivers was the norm, the issue of “stand-ins” began to take shape in the early 1970s. In 1970, for example, alongside Jackie Ickx, Ignazio Giunti and Clay Regazzoni occasionally took turns in the second Ferrari 312 B, with Clay even managing to win at Monza.

1972: GALLI AND MERZARIO

Two years later, it was Clay Regazzoni himself who skipped the races in France and Great Britain due to illness: in the first case, Nanni Galli raced in his place, while in England, it was Arturo Merzario’s turn, who then also raced in Germany in the third Ferrari alongside Ickx and Regazzoni, who was returning after his arm injury. The Brands Hatch 1972 race with Arturo was the last case before Oliver Bearman in Jeddah 2024 of a driver making his F1 debut aboard a Ferrari. Arturo did a great job with the 312 B2, finishing 6th, which at the time awarded a point.

1976, MONZA: THE LAST TIME WITH THREE FERRARIS

Then we come to 1976, the year of Niki Lauda’s terrible accident at the Nurburgring. Niki Lauda’s condition is critical, and Enzo Ferrari signs up Carlos Reutemann for the Italian GP, after only running the Dutch GP with Regazzoni. However, Lauda makes a swift recovery, and both to defend his championship lead and annoyed by Enzo’s call to the Argentine, he immediately gets back into the car at Monza: on that occasion, Reutemann, who was a possible stand-in, becomes the third driver (he finished 9th), in the last instance where the Prancing Horse fielded three official cars at the start of a GP.

1977: GILLES VILLENEUVE MAKES HIS DEBUT

The following year, Niki Lauda clinches his second career title but, with the championship secured and in conflict with Enzo Ferrari, he decides not to take part in the last two races. Il Drake replaces him with a semi-unknown Gilles Villeneuve, a snowmobile champion who had only raced once in F1, at Silverstone 1977 with McLaren. Gilles races with the Red in Canada and Japan (without scoring points), marking the beginning of a story that will consume rivers of ink.

1982: THE HORRIBLE YEAR

In 1982, unfortunately, Gilles fell victim to the terrible accident at Zolder, where he lost his life during qualifying. In his place, Enzo Ferrari called upon Patrick Tambay to start from Zandvoort, but three races later, the other regular driver, Didier Pironi, had a terrible accident too, leaving him with shattered legs from a crash and forcing him to bid farewell to his F1 career. It was an extremely complicated year for Ferrari: Tambay had to withdraw from Dijon (the race was held in France but organized as the Swiss GP) due to back problems, and on that occasion, the Scuderia found itself without drivers on the grid. In the following race at Monza, Tambay was available again, and alongside him was Mario Andretti, who secured pole position and finished third as Pironi’s replacement. The Italo-American also raced in the last round in Las Vegas, where Tambay had to retire due to arm pain.

1985: ARNOUX, ONE RACE AND THEN FAREWELL

At the beginning of 1985, one of the most discussed and talked-about replacements in Ferrari’s history took place, of which the true reasons for dismissal are still unknown today. The protagonist was the Frenchman René Arnoux: he finished 4th in the opening race in Brazil but was soon ousted from the team. In his place, for the rest of the season, was Stefan Johansson, who raced with the Prancing Horse in the 1985-86 biennium alongside Michele Alboreto: a tally of 6 podiums in two seasons.

1991: FERRARI IS A “TRUCK,” PROST DISMISSED

After narrowly missing out on the title with Alain Prost in 1990, the following year Ferrari struggled with the 643 F1, failing to win a single race. After Suzuka, the Frenchman likened his car to a “truck” and was immediately dismissed: in the last race of the season, in Australia, Gianni Morbidelli raced, finishing immediately in the points (6th).

1992: LARINI REPLACES CAPELLI

Another unpleasant change occurred in 1992, at the end of a very complicated season. The F92A, born with great ambitions, turned out to be a deficient project: Ivan Capelli paid the price, forced to relinquish the wheel for the last two races (Japan and Australia) to Nicola Larini, the official test driver of the Scuderia.

1994: LARINI AGAIN

The driver from Camaiore proved useful once again in 1994 when Jean Alesi was sidelined by an accident during testing. The Frenchman had to miss the Pacific GP and the San Marino GP, the second and third races of the season, and his seat in the 412 T1 alongside Berger was taken by Larini. It was a brief stint of only two races, but it was a happy one: the Tuscan was knocked out at the start in Aida but finished 2nd at Imola. Unfortunately, Nicola’s first and only podium in his career was overshadowed by the tragedy of Senna.

1999: SCHUMI INJURED, HERE COMES SALO

In the last year of the millennium, Michael Schumacher was in a fierce battle for the title with the F399, but at Silverstone, a brake problem sent him into the barriers at Stowe: fractures to the tibia and fibula of his right leg and the championship hopes dashed. In his place, Ferrari called upon the Finnish driver Mika Salo, who served alongside Eddie Irvine: Salo reached the podium twice in six races (2nd in Germany and 3rd in Monza) and above all, relinquished the victory to Irvine at Hockenheim, foregoing what could have been his only F1 win.

1999 was a year full of stories: Irvine, from Schumi’s wingman, became a serious title contender and handed over the crown to Hakkinen only in the last race, while Ferrari, after 16 years of drought, managed to console itself with the Constructors’ title, thanks to Salo’s points but also to Schumacher’s, who returned for the last two races with two poles and two second places.

Salo’s story is also curious: in 1999, Mika was left without a seat by Arrows a few weeks before the start, then raced three times with BAR (Imola, Monaco, and Barcelona) as a replacement for the injured Zonta, and once Zonta returned from injury and reclaimed the seat, Salo was unexpectedly called by Ferrari to replace Schumi. Thus, despite not having a contract as a regular driver, Salo raced in 9 GPs that year, in what, statistically, was his best season in Formula 1.

2009: SCHUMI, BADOER, AND FISICHELLA

During qualifying in Budapest, the spring lost from Barrichello’s Brawn GP car hits Massa on the helmet: Felipe escapes serious injury, but returning to the car for the remainder of the championship is out of the question. President Montezemolo considers Michael Schumacher to finish the season in the F60 vacated by the Brazilian. Schumi tries, but then declines due to neck problems resulting from a motorcycle fall. However, his desire returns, and in 2010, he will race with Mercedes. Meanwhile, in Maranello, they consider the historic test driver of the Scuderia, Luca Badoer, who returns to racing even 10 years after his last GP: a daunting task, with Badoer finishing 17th in Valencia and 14th in Spa. From Monza onwards, and for the last five races, Giancarlo Fisichella is called up by Force India to join Kimi Raikkonen, fulfilling his dream of racing with Ferrari, albeit without scoring points.

2024: THE YOUNGEST FERRARISTA EVER

The rest is history from the last weekend: appendicitis sidelines Sainz, and in his place, the Englishman Oliver Bearman takes the wheel. Born in 2005, he is the first driver born after Schumi’s last title (2004) to race for Ferrari (and in Formula 1 in general). He also becomes the youngest ever to compete in a GP with the Prancing Horse at 18 years, 10 months, and 1 day, surpassing the previous record held by Ricardo Rodriguez, who raced with the team at Monza in 1961 at the age of 19 years, 6 months, and 27 days. Bearman’s debut is one to remember, immediately finishing in the points: 7th.

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He replied that he felt lucky to still be alive unlike many other drivers who tragically died in racing accidents. However, referring to his overall results in the series, he also wanted to underline that he found himself in the right place at the wrong time several times. In this regard, he brought up current Scuderia Ferrari Monegasque driver Charle Leclerc

The comments of Arturo Merzario
“My first car? I didn’t even have a driving licence, I used my brother’s”, Arturo Merzario admitted in the interview for La Gazzetta dello Sport – “Then my parents gave me a Giulietta Spider 1300, luxury stuff. In 1962 I ran my first race there for Scuderia Lario, in Monza. It was the Fisa Cup: out of 32 starters I finished eighth with the car with the radio on. I liked racing and I liked … women. It worked, eh. Just imagine: the others went by bike…”, he says.

Arturo Marzario then explains what his first steps into the racing world were: “When did I realize I could be a professional? At the Nurburgring in 1963. It didn’t seem true that I could drive on the left, without fear of a bus arriving. I beat all the its drivers, and then Abarth hired me. Only that there was the military. I only started in 1967”.

A few years later, in 1969, Arturo Merzario won the European Tourism Championship. A victory that earned him a call to Scuderia Ferrari: “In 1969: it seemed like an unattainable goal. Instead, thanks to my ignorant right foot, I was there. I was a Formula 1 driver, test driver, postman, everything: as was the custom at the time” .

At the time motor racing was not as safe a sport as it is today. When asked if he has ever been afraid behind the wheel of a car, Merzario replies: “Yes, always. Even on the motorway from Milan to here, in Carate Brianza. Let alone in the race. Not afraid of dying. Because if you moeret you moeret, if you die, you die. I was and am afraid of being disabled. The driver who says he’s not afraid is talking nonsense” – he added.

In 1976, at the Nurburgring, Merzario made a heroic gesture: he rescued Niki Lauda from the burning car, saving his life. In this regard he states: “It was one of the moments that mark a life. Mine and his. If Niki lived another forty years it is thanks to Arturo’s madness. Because you had to be crazy to do what I did. I’m a believer, not a practitioner: but I think something told me to stop. Then that Ron Howard made us a completely wrong novel in that film.”

Finally, on his recent commitments: “The last race? In September, at Goodwood. But last year I also did a real race, at the Nurburgring, for the 50th anniversary of BMW motorsport, with the M2. Two laps from the end I was third, I could have gone on the podium at 79. The safety car came out, at the restart they passed me in two… Now I race for the health insurance company, with prototypes and historic F.1s. I have the great fortune of driving the Ferrari of Phil Hill from 1961, Jim Clark’s Lotus 21. What more do I want?”.

The words of Arturo Merzario on Charles Leclerc
“I’ve had it all and more, in my career and in my life. I’m super lucky, just to still be here. From my generation we’re left with Andretti, Stewart and me.” Then he brings up the current Ferrari driver, underlining: “Many times it happened to me to be in the right place at the wrong time. I’m afraid it’s like this for Charles Leclerc too…”.

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Watch as Arturo Merzario (Ferrari) and George Follmer (Shadow-Ford) crash in the practice session for the 1973 Formula 1 Monaco Grand Prix:

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In this video, former Ferrari driver Arturo Merzario recalls saving Niki Lauda’s life after the horror crash:

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Several of them appeared optimistic, from Gerhard Berger to Cesare Fiorio, but many were quite harsh in their judgment calling for a drastic change of direction, despite the new technical rules representing a great opportunity.

“As an enthusiast, I am disappointed – commented drastically Arturo Merzario, who drove for Ferrari in the two-year period 1972-73 always remaining a great supporter, in a recent interview for Italian daily newspaper La Gazzetta dello Sport – “The story of the new car no longer stands. There have been so many years since Ferrari has won. It is not acceptable to be satisfied with finishing fourth and fifth with big gaps as compared to the top. Unfortunately, these are moments of crisis and I ran into them too: one year Ickx, comparable in class to Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen, did not qualify at Silverstone. Well, Enzo Ferrari didn’t take it at all well… ”.

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“We need a man with a firm hand, a person like Montezemolo, he was the real heir of  Enzo Ferrari, taking up his tradition and improving it – added the former driver – I heard about Jean Todt: his return would be geat but he needs new people, mainly English technicians are needed as happened in the days of Ross Brawn and Rory Byrne. Binotto is right to keep his feet firmly on the ground, the gap with Mercedes and Red Bull is exaggerated. Next year they have to think about winning races but for the World Championship I think it is really difficult.” – he concluded.

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