Lewis Hamilton is set to end his 12-year tenure with Mercedes to join Ferrari in 2025.
Ferrari’s team principal, Frederic Vasseur, is preparing to challenge Red Bull ahead of Hamilton’s arrival next season. Hamilton, who is in pursuit of his eighth F1 world title, believes that leaving Mercedes will provide him with the best opportunity to achieve this goal.
Current Constructors’ Championship standings appear to support Hamilton’s decision. After six races in the 2024 season, Mercedes’ points total is approximately one-third of Ferrari’s, with Vasseur’s team closely trailing Red Bull.
Neither Hamilton nor his Mercedes teammate, George Russell, have reached the podium this year. In contrast, Ferrari has achieved podium finishes six times, with Carlos Sainz securing a victory at the Australian Grand Prix in March.
Vasseur’s recent comments have likely quelled any doubts Hamilton might have had about his decision to switch teams and the scale of Ferrari’s ambitions.
“Our goal is to be faster than [Red Bull],” Vasseur told Autosport. “We don’t intend to stay behind and wait. Last year, with a five or six tenths advantage, Red Bull won easily, even if they had a poor start. They could overtake one car per lap and be in P1 after five laps.”
Hamilton and Vasseur have a long history, dating back to when Hamilton raced for Vasseur’s F2 team, ART Grand Prix, in 2006, before becoming a seven-time world champion.
Since taking over at Ferrari last year, Vasseur has made a significant impact. He aims to restore Ferrari’s former glory by adopting a risk-taking approach, which could benefit Hamilton.
“I want to take some risks because our competitors are doing the same,” Vasseur continued. “Red Bull’s DNA is probably to always be at the limit. I’m trying to instill a more aggressive culture within our team.
“If you always play it safe, you might avoid problems, but you also miss out on performance gains. We need to collectively embrace risk-taking. I’m leading this charge and I’m also ready to accept that mistakes can happen.”
