Stefano Domenicali
Stefano Domenicali
Stefano Domenicali was born in Imola in 1965, a stone's throw from the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari. As a young boy, he went to the Italian circuit on weekends to help out in the paddock and media centre. That is how Domenicali became interested in motorsport.
In the early 1990s he joined Ferrari, where he moved up to the sports department in 1995. A year later, the Italian was promoted to team manager. Domenicali would fulfill this role until 2001. In 2002 he became sporting director of the Scuderia and in 2007 he took over from Jean Todt as sporting director of Ferrari and in 2008 the title of team boss was added. His first season as team principal was an immediate success, as Ferrari won the constructors' title that year. This is also the last title that Ferrari has won to date. He could not repeat that success, although Fernando Alonso came very close to a world title for the Italians in 2012. In 2014, Domenicali said goodbye to Ferrari and took a different path.
Domenicali stayed in the car industry and found a place at Audi. He never really left Formula 1, because in addition to working for Audi, the Italian also started at the FIA as head of the Single-Seater Commission. In 2016, Domenicali became CEO of Lamborghini S.p.A. which has been part of Audi since 1998. Domenicali held this role until 2020.
In 2021 he officially found his way back into Formula 1. After the acquisition of Liberty Media, Chase Carey was CEO from 2017, but according to the American it was time to pass on that role. Domenicali was the right man for the position. When Liberty Media took over Formula 1 from Bernie Ecclestone, the sport started to change. New ways to gain new fans were added, such as the Netflix series Drive To Survive and the sprint race weekends. Formula 1 has been on the rise since the takeover and while Domenicali is happy with the new interest, he knows that the fans who have followed the sport for years should not be forgotten. For him, the task is to find the right balance between old and new.
The same applies to the circuits where Formula 1 travels. Some courses have been on the calendar since the 1950s, but there is increasing interest from other countries in organizing a Grand Prix. Domenicali has the difficult task of broadening the sport, but also ensure that the rich history of the sport is not forgotten.
Besides Formula 1, Domenicali is a big fan of MotoGP. He himself played basketball in his youth and he says he still has a sideways eye towards the NBA when he can. Finally, Domenicali has many friends in football and, when time permits, tries to watch a match of the Italian national team.
