Ferrari has been a graveyard for world champions in recent seasons.
Lewis Hamilton referenced the long line of former champions who have failed at his new team, and the seven-time world champion appears to be following a similar path.
Some of the greatest drivers in F1 history have suited up in the Scuderia red with high expectations, only to fail to meet them. Here, we look at five of the best drivers never to bring a world title to Maranello.
1. Alain Prost
Alain Prost arrived at Ferrari as a three-time world champion with McLaren. He joined during a historic rivalry with teammate Ayrton Senna, which he hoped to continue with his new team.
It was one of the biggest driver moves in F1 history. Prost joined Ferrari as their first signing since the death of founder Enzo Ferrari, and he hoped to bring multiple championships to the team.
1990 was the closest he got, but a controversial crash with Senna in Japan gave the Brazilian the championship in the McLaren. 1991, however, was a disaster.
Prost, in his unreliable Ferrari, finished only eight races. He was winless throughout the year and called his car a “truck”. He was swiftly fired, and went on to win his fourth championship with Williams in 1993.
2. Fernando Alonso
Fernando Alonso left McLaren to join Ferrari in 2010, joining as a two-time champion with Renault. He joined Felipe Massa, who had his heart broken by Lewis Hamilton two years prior after the Brit snatched the championship from him on the final corner of the season.
Alonso suffered a similar tragedy with Ferrari. He led the 2010 championship entering the final race of the season, after winning five races that year. But a seventh-place finish through a mismanaged strategy meant Sebastian Vettel and Red Bull took the title on the final race.
He didn’t come close against a dominant Red Bull in 2011, but again Alonso had the title stolen away on the final race by Vettel in 2012. The Spaniard entered the Brazilian Grand Prix 13 points behind Vettel.
Vettel spun on the opening lap, and Alonso finished the race in second, but a stunning recovery drive saw Alonso’s title rival finish fourth and win the championship. He went on to finish second in the championship for a third time in 2013.
By 2014, Alonso’s relationship with the team had soured. He was winless on the season, and left for McLaren at the end of the year as another champion to join Ferrari, only not to deliver them a title.
3. Sebastian Vettel
Replacing Alonso at Ferrari was the man who had haunted him for years, Vettel. He was a four-time champion when he made the move and had established himself as Red Bull’s greatest ever driver in their young history.
He arrived to the team hoping to end their title drought. They hadn’t won a driver’s title in seven seasons, but like Alonso and Prost, Vettel’s early signs at Maranello looked promising. He won on his debut, and immediately took the challenge to Mercedes and Hamilton.
Vettel ended the season in third place with three wins and 13 podiums, a step in the right direction for Ferrari, who had been winless in nearly two years. 2016 was a write-off, as reliability issues and poor car performance meant Ferrari were winless again.
2017 and ’18, however, were intense title battles. He was leading the championship in both years against Hamilton and Mercedes. He led by 14 points at the summer break in 2017, but Hamilton dominated the second half of the year to win the title.
2018 was his best chance and Vettel and Hamilton both went for their fifth world title. He once again led the championship, but a costly mistake at his home grand prix turned the tide of the season and Hamilton again won the Drivers’ championship.
Ferrari declined in the following seasons, and Vettel followed in the footsteps of Alonso as one of the best drivers on the F1 grid who failed to bring the championship back to Italy.
4. Nigel Mansell
Nigel Mansell joined Ferrari a year before Prost, who would become his teammate in 1990. He was the final driver chosen by Enzo Ferrari. Mansell was nicknamed “the lion” by Ferrari fans due to his fearlessness, but friction with Prost saw the Brit leave the team he called “a prison” at the end of the year.
Mansell took a surprise win on his debut in 1989 at the Brazilian Grand Prix. The season was plagued with reliability issues, but he did take a remarkable win in Hungary. He went from 12th to first, overtaking Senna to take the victory.
The reliability issues for Mansell continued into 1990. He retired from seven races and played second fiddle to Prost.
An infamous incident with Prost severed their relationship midseason. Prost demanded he had Mansell’s car at the British Grand Prix when he discovered it was quicker than his. Ferrari did this without telling Mansell.
Mansell retired from the race and announced his retirement from the sport. But instead, he joined Williams and won the championship in 1992.
5. Jean Alesi
Jean Alesi was a young talent poised to be the next big thing in the sport. He moved to Ferrari from Tyrrell in 1991, replacing Mansell, and had shown flashes of excellence in 1990. Alesi had challenged Senna’s McLaren for race wins in the early stages of the season.
Alesi suffered the same issues as Prost in 1991, which led to Prost calling the car a “truck” and getting fired. Prost’s departure made Alesi Ferrari’s lead driver in 1992.
He stood little chance of winning over the next two seasons. The car was slow and unreliable, meaning he finished seventh in the championship in 1992, and sixth in 1993. 1994 saw steady progress, and the Frenchman finished second at Silverstone.
In 1995, Alesi won his first and only race. It was on his birthday at the Canadian Grand Prix. But after yet another season of not contending for the title, Alesi was replaced by Michael Schumacher.
Schumacher went on to have an iconic Ferrari career, and Alesi finished his F1 career having won only one race.