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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Thursday, January 28, 2010

Auto racing: Ferrari unveils 2010 car: the F10


Associated Press

MARANELLO, Italy — Ferrari launched its car for the upcoming Formula One season Thursday, calling it the F10 in hopes of restoring the team's winning tradition.

For years Ferrari named its cars with an "F'' for Ferrari followed by the year, but last year's uncompetitive car was called the F60 to honor Ferrari's 60th year in F1.

"We're coming off a season that was not competitive for us and this should mark a turning point for the future," team director Stefano Domenicali said. "We want to win again."

In another change, the predominantly red car features white wings to showcase the team's new sponsor, the Spanish bank Santander.

Last season, Ferrari finished fourth in the constructors' standings and Kimi Raikkonen, Felipe Massa and Giancarlo Fisichella placed sixth, 11th and 15th in the drivers' ranks.

Fisichella replaced Massa midseason after the Brazilian nearly lost his life in a crash at the Hungarian Grand Prix. Massa is set to return this season and Fernando Alonso has been hired to replace Raikkonen, while Fisichella will be the team's reserve driver.

Alonso was a two-time Formula One champion with Renault.

"You can't have two without three," Domenicali said of the Spanish star. "The moment is right, for him and for us."

Massa was scheduled to be behind the wheel for the F10's first official test in Valencia, Spain, on Monday. A brief spin around Ferrari's private Fiorano track Thursday was canceled because of icy conditions.

"After a season as dramatic as the last one — but also fantastic for the birth of his son — Felipe can show what type of driver he is," Domenicali said. "He can restart from that straightaway in Hungary, where destiny stopped him."

The season begins with the Bahrain GP on March 14.