You can always count on Ferrari to be in the news, even when it’s sitting on the sidelines. Such was the case at the 2018 Detroit Auto Show. The Italian automaker didn’t have a new model debut. It didn’t have some of its new models on display, either. All it had was a Ferrari 812 Superfast that was on exhibit near the food court along with a few cars from other brands, including an Audi RS7, Porsche 911 Exclusive Series, and a Maserati Gran Turismo. Despite the notable absence, Ferrari CEO Sergio Marchionne more than made up for it by holding court on a number of announcements involving the Prancing Horse, including the development of an electric supercar that Ferrari plans to build to challenge Tesla in the premium electric car market.

There comes a point when skepticism becomes the only remaining impediment to achieving growth. Ferrari learned that the hard way on two segments that it brushed off in the past: SUVs and alternative engines.

Give credit to Ferrari, though, because it not only recognized the legitimacy of the SUV market and the potential of alternative engines, it’s actually planning to enter both segments with guns loaded and blazing.

We already know about the automaker’s SUV plans. CEO Sergio Marchionne isn’t just settling for a Ferrari SUV. He also wants to take the fight to Tesla and re-establish a new world order in the electric supercar segment. “If there is an electric supercar to be built, then Ferrari will be the first,” Marchionne told Bloomberg. “People are amazed at what Tesla did with a supercar: I’m not trying to minimize what Elon did, but I think it’s doable by all of us.”

A battery-powered Ferrari may not be of interest among the automaker’s loyal tifosi, but the segment has become strong and popular enough that the company now sees potential in it. So Marchionne dropped the hammer in Detroit with his all-electric supercar announcement.

Details about the car will take some time to take shape, but we can assume that Maranello isn’t going to settle for just “another” electric supercar. It’s going to swing for the fences in developing a car that becomes the standard in its segment.

These claims certainly come with a lot of boasts, but this is still Ferrari we’re talking about. Everything it’s ever done has always come with a goal of being the best. Now that Marchionne has confirmed plans to develop an all-electric Ferrari supercar, don’t expect things to be different this time around.

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