MOTORSPORT: Another big change at Ferrari

Just months ago Marco Mattiacci (pictured) was a star of the Ferrari business, heading sales of its road cars in the key North American market until summoned to resurrect its fading Formula One team.

Today Mattiacci, a 15-year veteran of the Prancing Horse, is gone entirely from the revered stable of F1 and the motor industry.

Not only did the F1 team not improve under him after he replaced Stefano Domenicali in April, nor did it stall. Instead it went further into reverse.

Fernando Alonso and Kimi Raikkonen finished ninth and 10th in Sunday night's season finale, the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, both almost 1½ minutes behind the victorious Mercedes of Lewis Hamilton.

It has been Ferrari's first winless season since 1993. Alonso, the best driver in F1, although rapidly being challenged for that accolade by Australia's Daniel Ricciardo (despite Hamilton just having won the world title), has not been on the podium since Hungary in late July, when he finished second to Ricciardo, Raikkonen has not been on the podium all year.

It's been the annus horribilis for the famed scuderia.

It's not exactly on the skids, but it's on the ropes – only fourth in the constructors' world championship with 216 points to the 701 of Mercedes, Red Bull Racing's 405 and the 320 of a Williams team that last year scored only five points.

There already had been other casualties at Ferrari this year – long-time chairman Luca di Montezemolo, the man at the helm in the championship-winning days of first Niki Lauda and later Michael Schumacher, and engine chief Luca Marmorini.

And the uncompetitiveness of the Ferrari F1 cars the past couple of years has enabled Alonso to exit two years short of what was to have been the expiry of his contract and return to McLaren, this time with Honda power for the second year of the hybrid era to which Ferrari has not adapted well.

Now Fiat Chrysler's ruthless chief, Sergio Marchionne, who doubles as Ferrari chairman, has turned to Maurizio Arrivabene to restore the F1 team to glory in place of Mattiaci.

Arrivabene is a senior Phillip Morris executive with long links to Ferrari through sponsorship – even though it cannot display its Marlboro logo on the F1 cars any longer, Phillip Morris owns the rights to on-sell sponsorship on them to other companies – and is a member of the F1 Commission.

There had been speculation throughout the weekend in Abu Dhabi that Mattiaci was losing support, but he insisted – while admitting there was "nothing to celebrate" from the season just ended – that he was focused on helping the team move forward into 2015.

But within hours of the chequered flag Marchionne announced: "We decided to appoint Maurizio Arrivabene because, at this historic moment in time for the Scuderia and for Formula One, we need a person with a thorough understanding not just of Ferrari but also of the governance mechanisms and requirements of the sport.

"Maurizio has a unique wealth of knowledge: he has been extremely close to the Scuderia for years and, as a member of the F1 Commission, is also keenly aware of the challenges we are facing. He has been a constant source of innovative ideas focused on revitalisation of F1.

"His managerial experience on a highly complex and closely regulated market is also of great importance and will help him manage and motivate the team."