Ferrari 'serious' about leaving Formula One

Ferrari chairman Sergio Marchionne says that the Scuderia are 'serious' about leaving Formula One over the proposed new engine changes and more even distribution of revenue between constructor teams even though he is now involved with Ferrari's second-string Alfa Romeo Sauber team.

The new owners of F1, Liberty Media, are planning to implement radical new engine changes which would see the focus shift over to reliability rather than speed.

When the proposals were announced, the main critics were Ferrari, Mercedes, and Renault, with the Italian manufacturer even going as far as to threaten to leave the sport altogether if compromises could not be met.

The changes would see a standardisation of engine parts and less money available for power units which would aim to level the playing field among all the teams.

Marchionne has urged the bosses of Liberty to take Ferrari's threat to leave seriously.

"The dialogue has started and will continue to evolve," he said at the presentation of the new Alfa Romeo Sauber F1 team.

"We have time until 2020 to find a solution which benefits Ferrari. The threat of Ferrari leaving Formula 1 is serious. The agreement with Sauber expires in 2020-2021, right when Ferrari could leave. We have to find a solution which is good for the sport but we also have to be clear on the things we can't back down on."

Marchionne went on to say he would rather Ferrari left than simply "play NASCAR globally."