December 16 has been flagged as a potentially momentous day in Luca di Montezemolo’s career.
According to French F1 commentator Jean-Louis Moncet writing in his Auto Plus column, the Ferrari president has called journalists to Fiorano on that day.
"What will he tell us?" wondered Moncet.
It is speculated that the Ferrari president will discuss the famous Maranello based team and possible tweaks in the management.
"Maybe he will talk about politics," added Moncet.
Indeed, in recent days, 63-year-old Montezemolo has been mentioned in Italian reports about the likely demise later this month of the country’s prime minister Silvio Berlusconi.
"He could use his high profile in business as a springboard into politics the way Berlusconi did in the early 1990s," one report said.
Fascinatingly, Montezemolo’s December 16 meeting with journalists is due just two days after Berlusconi faces a confidence vote in Italian parliament "which may well bring down the government", reported the New York Times.
Referring to Berlusconi, the Daily Telegraph quoted Montezemolo as saying last week: "The one-man show is over."