Home » Formula 1 » Who is Diego Ioverno? New Ferrari director replaces Laurent Mekies

Here’s everything you need to know about Ferrari’s new sporting director Diego Ioverno .

Ferrari has appointed Diego Ioverno as the new director, taking over the position from Laurent Mekies, who is set to join the AlphaTauri F1 team. Ioverno has been a dedicated member of the Scuderia for the past 23 years, working in Maranello.

In his new role, he will work closely with his pit wall colleagues, Matteo Togninalli, Head of Track Engineering, and Ravin Jain, Race Strategist, all reporting directly to Team Principal, Fred Vasseur. This appointment is part of a broader restructuring effort within the Scuderia, which saw the introduction of Fred Vasseur earlier in the year, replacing Mattia Binotto.

Diego Ioverno
Diego Ioverno

Ioverno has taken on the role of the team’s new sporting director and will be present on the pitwall during the upcoming race in Belgium. In this position, Ioverno will handle all sporting affairs, which includes communication with the governing body FIA.

Notably, Ioverno has been associated with Ferrari for an impressive span of 23 years. As of now, Ferrari holds the fourth position in the championship, with 11 races completed out of 22 this season. Following the F1 summer break next week, Ioverno will face a challenging task in managing the team’s affairs.

How has Diego Ioverno’s journey been in motorsport?

Ioverno began his motorsport journey by working as a gearbox assembly technician for Scuderia Ferrari. He eventually rose to lead the gearbox assembly department during the team’s dominant period in the early 2000s.

In 2008, he assumed the position of head of car assembly, overseeing car builds for all F1 tests and sessions. Additionally, in 2010, Ioverno took on the role of head of race operations, which involved managing the team’s garage operations, coordinating with mechanics and technicians, and taking charge of pit stops.

Diego Ioverno
Diego Ioverno

Following Massimo Rivola’s departure in 2015, Ioverno assumed the role of sporting manager, where he not only continued his previous responsibilities but also represented Scuderia Ferrari in discussions with the FIA and the Sporting Working Group.

In 2018, he transitioned to a factory-based position, but in 2021, he received the opportunity to return to the trackside as the chief engineer for vehicle operations. As of July 27, 2023, Ioverno was announced as Ferrari’s sporting director starting from the 2023 Belgian Grand Prix, taking over the position due to Laurent Mekies’ departure to become team principal at AlphaTauri.

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