Last season Scuderia Ferrari tried its assault towards the Constructors’ title, losing it definitely at the final GP in Abu Dhabi, however from a technical point of view it is still in a good position to try again next year, partly thanks to a lineup which will be one of the main talking points in Formula 1 after the winter break. Seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton will arrive in Maranello to join Charles Leclerc. The Ferrari debut for the British driver is expected in late January 2025; meanwhile, there have already been some very first steps of approach in his new team.
Ferrari: Hamilton has already been in Maranello recently
Frédéric Vasseur’s team has been busy in completing the last days of data analysis before the Christmas break, when the work will resume in early January there will be a very intense schedule leading up to the livery presentation show in London, the shakedown of the new single-seater Project 677 and, of course, Lewis Hamilton’s track debut in Red along with Charles Leclerc. Vasseur spoke about the first phases of the year: “It’s always a challenge because we start from the beginning of January and reach the season launch on the 18th in London, then we will do the actual presentation on the 19th in Maranello. It means we basically have only six weeks, which is not easy”, the TP revealed at the Christmas dinner organized by Ferrari, referring to the preparation the team will have to engage in for Hamilton’s debut in red, in a very short and intense schedule. The former Mercedes driver did not drive the SF-24 in the post season tests, however the first meetings with his future team happened already in this time frame, around Abu Dhabi, including the fascinating meeting before leaving the Yas Marina circuit which was officially filmed, and more. According to the information AutoRacer has gathered, Lewis Hamilton has already visited Maranello privately. This is not a major surprise for Formula 1 or Ferrari itself since Carlos Sainz Jr also did something similar in his time: a hidden meeting, which the Spaniard himself unveiled after a few weeks, since at the time he was still under contract with McLaren. On Hamilton’s behalf this was a first approach to better prepare himself for 2025, once again testifying to the great desire to start this exciting new chapter of his career.
The learning curve will be steep ahead of official testing in Bahrain, but this does not appear to worry Vasseur too much. “I think Lewis is very experienced, he is not the rookie of the year. I’m not worried about that at all, and there is also the continuity of the previous regulation that comes in our favor. And so that means we have some reference, I’m not worried about that. But it is true that it will be a challenge: if we imagine going to Bahrain and having maybe a storm like we had a couple of years ago, we know we only have three days there and that’s it.” There will be few but important days of work, nevertheless Frederic Vasseur appeared totally calm talking to reporters at the usual Christmas lunch, not fearing problems with Hamilton’s adaptation or even repercussions related to his last season in which he has manifested difficulties especially in Qualifying. “It’s on Sunday that points are awarded and I’m not worried about that at all, for sure we know that we will have a lot of procedures to assimilate during these first weeks. But I think it has enough experience to do it, we will have the advantage of having the simulator, we will be able to do a race simulation, a qualifying simulation and be fully prepared with the steering wheel and all the details of the car. But honestly I’m not worried about that and it’s not the biggest challenge”, Ferrari’s Team Principal revealed.
Hamilton – Ferrari: everything has already been planned for the first tests at Fiorano
Planning has already started and everything will be done to allow Hamilton to arrive as prepared as possible for the first outing of the season as ready as possible. “We will have the opportunity to do a TPC or Pirelli test day but it is strictly related to the weather and we have not made a decision” Vasseur said without giving out more information. However, AutoRacer has learned that the date when we will see Lewis Hamilton for the first time aboard one of the old Ferraris to carry out a TPC in a training test, will be between the 21st and 22nd of January: the presence of more than one date is related to the unknown weather conditions and the possibility of other drivers joining in. The Scuderia usually carries out this training program for its drivers, but this year it will be even more important to start building an affinity between Hamilton and the team he will inherit from Carlos Sainz. In case of bad weather, Ferrari seems to already have a plan B with the possibility of moving to Mugello or even Imola or postponing the test to another day. After the January test, the launch in London and the unveiling of the new Ferrari set for February 19th, Lewis Hamilton will have the chance to go on track once again before the Bahrain tests, in Barcelona for training and official Pirelli tests.
As Vasseur confirmed, there will be no official dedicated event as a presentation to welcome Lewis Hamilton. The French engineer said he wants to focus only on the season, without dwelling on setting a show. “We have to be focused on the season to come. There will be a very brief period between Lewis’ first day in Maranello and the launch of the car. It’s a matter of a few weeks, and I want everyone to focus only on performance. It means we will have the launch in London and the day after that the official launch of our car. For me, those are already two major events and it is definitely too much. I want to be focused on development, performance and not on the show.” Vasseur said.
