Ferrari team principal Frederic Vasseur is taking his role of ending the team’s wait for a Formula 1 championship incredibly seriously.
He made his intentions very clear before the 2024 season even began by signing seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton for the start of the next campaign.
Speaking on the Nailing the Apex Podcast, journalist Tim Hauraney has shared the latest member of staff Frederic Vasseur wants to bring in.
The latest target for Ferrari is Adrian Newey and it was confirmed on Wednesday that he would be leaving Red Bull in the ‘first quarter of 2025’.
Newey has plenty of potential suitors including Aston Martin who have offered him a ridiculous contract.
However, Newey is ‘seriously considering’ joining Ferrari and they want another key member of Red Bull personnel to follow him.
Hauraney believes that Ferrari are also targeting Pierre Wache and that Vasseur has already been working on a deal.
The French engineer is currently Red Bull’s technical director and has worked closely with Newey for some time.
Ferrari seem to be taking the approach that whatever has worked for Red Bull to dominate the sport since 2021 should work for them too.
READ MORE: Everything you need to know about Scuderia Ferrari from team principal to factory
Frederic Vasseur ‘working’ on bringing Pierre Wache to Ferrari
Pierre Wache joined Red Bull back in 2013 having started his career in the sport at the beginning of the centre with tyre manufacturer Michelin.
When Michelin left Formula 1, he joined BMW Sauber and became their head of vehicle performance before joining the technical committee in 2012.
His work was recognised by Red Bull the following year and he was part of the team that helped Sebastian Vettel win his final world championship.
A fallow period of finishing second and third in the Constructors’ Championship followed but Wache has been instrumental in Red Bull’s recent upturn.
Ferrari team principal Frederic Vasseur has recognised this and now wants Wache to join Newey in Maranello.
The idea of two of Red Bull’s most important staff members joining one of their close rivals will be very worrying for Christian Horner and Max Verstappen.
Ferrari plotting to create the ultimate backroom staff
Speaking about what’s going on at Maranello, Hauraney said: “Bringing in Frederic Vasseur was a genius move. Getting him to bring in Lewis Hamilton, genius move!
“And now you’re approaching it like, we need someone with immense talent to oversee our entire operation and that has to be Adrian Newey.
“And so I think, they’ll do whatever they’ve got to do to get him.
“I know Frederic Vasseur has been working behind the scenes pretty hard to get the number two Pierre Wache who also is a big, big component of that Red Bull Racing [team] because that’s an important figure there.
“The thing is, who’s going to come for him? It’s the piranha club man and they’re circling the team and they’re going to start taking body parts left, right and centre and that team could get pulled apart.
“Pierre Wache is a crucial component to that team, he’s a huge, huge part to that team and I wouldn’t be surprised if whoever ends up getting Adrian Newey doesn’t then go after Pierre Wache, like aggressively goes after them.”
In Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc, Ferrari will have arguably the strongest driver line-up on the grid next year.
And if Vasseur can secure the partnership of Newey and Wache behind the scenes, then Ferrari should be the team to beat when the regulations change in 2026.
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