Ferrari could abandon driver 'academy'

James Allison and Maurizio Arrivabene

(GMM) Ferrari could be set to abandon its young driver program.

Citing Italian sources, the Finnish newspaper Ilta Sanomat claims that new team president Sergio Marchionne, notorious for his strict economizing, is no fan of the so-called 'driver academy'.

Founded in 2009, and based on the earlier grooming of Felipe Massa, the first academy member Jules Bianchi died last month after a 2014 Suzuka crash.

The current members are Antonio Fuoco, Raffaele Marciello, Lance Stroll and the Chinese Guan Yu Zhou.

Ilta Sanomat reported that Marchionne and team boss Maurizio Arrivabene "believe that the money would be better spent on car development".