Italian court enforces 'gardening leave' for Cardile.

      Ferrari has approached a local court to stop its former technical director, Enrico Cardile, from taking a position at Aston Martin. Cardile, who spent two decades at Maranello, departed from the team last July and has been on "gardening leave" since then. It was anticipated that he would begin his new role this month, aligning with Adrian Newey's first day at the Silverstone factory on March 3, allowing them to collaborate on the 2026 project. However, reports suggest that the agreement between Ferrari and Aston Martin regarding Cardile’s early start has been effectively nullified by the Italian team.

      According to La Repubblica, "At Ferrari's request, the Modena Tribunal has mandated that its former technical director must immediately halt all forms of collaboration with Aston Martin until July 18." The report indicates that Cardile and Aston Martin "breached the non-compete obligation" associated with his gardening leave by working together prior to the stipulated start date. A court official was quoted by La Repubblica, stating: "The former employee was violating the non-compete obligation made in favor of Ferrari, aimed at preventing other teams from gaining an unjust advantage and inflicting irreparable harm on Ferrari." Earlier reports from Italy noted that Aston Martin's team owner, Lawrence Stroll, is "furious" about this situation.