Ferrari have signed Lewis Hamilton, the most successful driver in F1 history, for the 2025 season. And there’s no sign of their recruitment drive stopping there.
This week, the Scuderia confirmed the signing of two key figures from Mercedes. Loic Serra joins as head of chassis performance and engineering, while Jerome D’Ambrosio arrives as deputy team principal.
Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur is trying to bring the world championship back to Maranello after a painful drought. They haven’t won the constructors’ championship since 2008, nor the drivers’ championship since 2007.
The partnership between Hamilton and Charles Leclerc promises to be formidable. Ferrari will be the only team with two of the sport’s five elite drivers, at least in the eyes of the F1 paddock.
Leclerc’s former teammate Sebastian Vettel has warned that it will be ‘difficult’ for Vasseur to manage that dynamic. And double world champion Mika Hakkinen reckons the Monegasque can cause problems for Hamilton.
Former F1 driver Robert Doornbos has taken the opposite view, however. He thinks Leclerc is ‘too nice’ to survive a title fight with someone like Hamilton and risks being ‘eaten’.
Tom Coronel says Fred Vasseur would be ‘bigger than the Pope’ if he signed Max Verstappen
Speaking on the Racing News 365 podcast, Dutch racing driver Tom Coronel discussed the possibility of Hamilton and Max Verstappen racing together one day in scarlet red. Verstappen is under contract at Red Bull until 2028.
However, the Dutchman’s deal includes a couple of exit clauses. He’s free to depart if Helmut Marko leaves his post, or if he isn’t impressed with the 2026 Red Bull project.
Mercedes have held talks over signing the world champion but he has reservations over their lack of competitiveness. Ferrari may be a more appealing destination in that regard.
Coronel reckons that Vasseur would become a true icon within the Ferrari fanbase if he was able to pair him with Hamilton. But he says history has shown it may not be the best idea.
He said: “Hamilton-Verstappen, Leclerc-Verstappen. In the end it doesn’t matter. These are two top drivers that you have in your team.
“But there has to be respect for each other. And you usually don’t have that with those types of drivers.
“We have also seen it with Prost and Senna. We have even seen it with Nico Rosberg and Hamilton, they also drove each other off the track.”
“So things don’t always go well, but when things go well, a combination of two top drivers is a spectacle to see for the fans. You create stress, but when those two come together… then Fred Vasseur is bigger than the Pope for me.”
Is Adrian Newey going to Ferrari?
The more immediate focus, and the more realistic target for Vasseur, is Adrian Newey. The legendary engineer is leaving his role as chief technical officer at Red Bull in February 2025.
Ferrari have tried to sign Newey on three occasions, but he’s now ‘seriously considering’ the move to Italy. That’s partly because they’ve offered him exactly the kind of ‘super consultant’ role he desires.
The Englishman reportedly held talks with Vasseur in London ahead of the Miami Grand Prix. Insiders at Aston Martin expect him to join the Prancing Horse.
Even without Verstappen, Ferrari could be the favourites heading into 2026 if they have Newey and Hamilton on the board. And this will come as a ‘slap in the face’ to Carlos Sainz, who’s losing his seat to make room for the seven-time world champion.
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