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Ferrari embroiled in legal battle over 21-year-old's Facebook page

Ferrari is facing a court battle in Switzerland due to alleged copyright infringement over taking over a Facebook fan site. If the suit is successful, it could cost the company millions and harm its reputation on social media.
Sammy Wassem started the Facebook fan page for Ferrari when he was 15 and eventually grew it to over 500,000 followers. In 2009, the company congratulated the him on the site's success, but said that "legal issues" forced it to take over the administration, according to Automotive News Europe. Wassem could still use the site, but managers had oversight.
Wassem asked Ferrari for financial compensation to keep working on the page but continued creating content on it for the next four years. Eventually, the company terminated his administration rights, and In 2013, the he and his father Olivier filed the lawsuit against the business alleging it owes payment over 5,500 hours of work and copyright infringement for taking over the page. They are asking for 10 million Swiss francs ($11.3 million).

Mick Schumacher in F1 Ferrari test scores second-fastest lap at Bahrain

MANAMA, Bahrain — Mick Schumacher, son of seven-times world champion Michael, made his Formula One test debut for Ferrari in Bahrain on Tuesday and lapped second fastest behind Red Bull's Max Verstappen. On a surprisingly wet day at the same track where his father won the first grand prix in the Middle East with Ferrari 15 years ago, Schumacher was 0.597 seconds slower than the 21-year-old Dutchman. His time of 1 minute 29.976 seconds was set on the softest, and fastest, C5 tires — softer than anyone else's — and he completed 56 laps on a day where track time was limited by bad weather washing out much of the middle of the day. "I really enjoyed today. It felt like home in the garage from the very first moment with a lot of people that know me since I was very young," he said. The 20-year-old German, who made his Formula Two debut at the Sakhir circuit over the weekend and finished eighth and sixth in the two races, had been top with five minutes remaining before Verstappen went faster. It was still the first time since 2012 that a Schumacher had led an official Formula One time chart. "The SF90 is incredible because of the power it has, but it is also smooth to drive, and that's why I enjoyed myself so much," said Schumacher. "I was impressed by the braking power an F1 car has. It seemed to me you could brake later and later and the car would have made the turn anyway." The reigning European F3 champion will also test with the Ferrari-powered Alfa Romeo team (formerly Sauber) on Wednesday. Tuesday's test was Mick's first experience of a modern F1 car, although he did drive his father's 1994 title-winning Benetton at the Spa-Francorchamps circuit before the 2017 Belgian Grand Prix. Michael Schumacher, who still holds the record of 91 grand prix wins, won five of his titles with Ferrari in a golden period from 2000 to 2004. He last raced for the team in 2006 before a comeback with Mercedes from 2010-12 and has not been seen in public since he suffered severe head injuries in a skiing accident in the French Alps in December 2013. Mick, who joined the Ferrari academy in January, was the only debutant on track in a rain-hit session that followed Sunday's second grand prix of the season. Lewis Hamilton, Sunday's race winner for Mercedes after Ferrari's Charles Leclerc suffered a late engine problem, was sixth fastest.

Ferrari threatens to quit F1 over new engine regulations

This past week, the FIA and Liberty Media, the group that currently owns F1, announced a plan to shake up the sport's engine regulations in 2021. The new rules are intended to make things a bit more exciting, though not everyone seems to be on board. Ferrari and FCA CEO Sergio Marchionne fired back, saying that the Italian automaker isn't interested in staying if the regulations stray too far from their current course. According to Bloomberg, Marchionne said that Ferrari will only stay if there is "a set of circumstances, the results of which are beneficial for the maintenance of the brand in the marketplace and for strengthening the unique position of Ferrari." Ferrari occupies a special and unique place in the sport. It's the only team to have competed in the sport since it officially became Formula 1 back in 1950. The team even has certain veto powers not granted to any other team. No other team has more wins or more championships. It could be argued that F1 needs Ferrari more than Ferrari needs F1. If this all sounds familiar, that's because it is. It seems that every time the rules get changed, Ferrari throws up its hands and threatens to walk if things don't go its way. It may sound like whining, but Ferrari has a point. Part of what makes F1 special and different from sports like IndyCar and NASCAR is that each team builds its own cars from the ground up. Ferrari actually agrees with the cost-cutting measures but is opposed to any changes that take away from "powertrain uniqueness." Basically, Ferrari want each engine and hybrid unit to be unique. In the end, Ferrari is more likely than not to stay in F1. The team's bosses will use their weight to sway things in a direction that benefits them because they believe what's good for Ferrari is good for the sport. Related Video: News Source: BloombergImage Credit: Getty Motorsports Ferrari F1 scuderia ferrari