Ferrari almost buries the hatchet with Ford
After Ford announced the withdrawal of its lawsuit for trademark infringement, Ferrari responded by changing the name of its race car once again, with a hint of sarcasm.
According to Ferrari’s own admission, we may have witnessed the end of a Kafkaesque scenario today. Indeed, at the beginning of February, the Scuderia was forced to rename the F150 to F150th Italia under pressure from Ford, who accused Ferrari of naming their latest team addition in order to capitalize on what Ford developed with the F-150, the flagship pickup of the American brand.
Friday, Anne Marie Gattari, spokesperson for Ford – who was demanding, in addition to the name change, €100,000 in damages – announced the end of the lawsuit against the Italian brand: « We are pleased to have been able to resolve this issue amicably. »
On its website, Ferrari congratulates itself that common sense prevails and announces a new name change for the mount of Fernando Alonso and Felipe Massa, responding once again to the demands made by Ford.
Thus, after being called F150 and then F150th Italia, the new Ferrari will now bear the charming name of Ferrari 150° Italia to the great delight of guide writers for the upcoming season.
However, the Prancing Horse does not hesitate to give a few kicks: « In order to avoid the slight risk that someone might confuse a Formula One with a pickup, […] the men from Maranello have decided [to drop] the F that preceded the number 150 and which referred to Ferrari, as it has done on many occasions when it comes to naming a car, whether for the track or the road. »
But Ferrari doesn’t stop there and pulls once more at the bit: « It seems that this may have sown confusion in the minds of consumers across the Atlantic, [thus] after being deprived of its F, the name will be completely Italianized by replacing the English « th » with its Italian equivalent. Henceforth, the name will read Ferrari 150° Italia, which should clarify, even for the narrowest of minds, that the car’s name is a tribute to the 150th anniversary of our national unification. »
The Scuderia hopes to close this chapter and be able to focus on more serious matters, namely ensuring that [their] car, which already seems quite good on track, competes for victory.
To relive the presentation of the Ferrari 150° Italia, browse through our photo gallery:
