Free space for Schumacher?
Ferrari doesn’t just grab Hamilton from Mercedes
February 3, 2024, 12:00 p.m
The move from Lewis Hamilton to Ferrari is a coup – which is now apparently continuing. Two engineers are also set to move from Mercedes to the Italian Formula 1 racing team. Meanwhile, Ralf Schumacher is promoting his nephew Mick.
Ferrari is working hard to provide Lewis Hamilton with a powerful team for the 2025 season. As the “Gazzetta dello Sport” reports, engineers Loic Serra and Riccardo Musconi are also set to move from Mercedes to Maranello along with the record Formula 1 world champion. The Frenchman Serra is currently responsible for the driving dynamics of Hamilton’s Mercedes, the Italian Musconi, who comes from Imola, is considered a close confidant of the Briton.
Frédéric Vasseur, team boss of the Scuderia, which has been waiting for a title in the premier class of motorsport since 2007, recently confirmed that it wanted to hire engineers from “outside the Ferrari world”. In this area, the traditional racing team is “undersized” compared to Red Bull, Mercedes or Aston Martin.
On Thursday, Ferrari and Mercedes announced the sensational change of seven-time world champion Hamilton after the coming season. The 39-year-old signed a contract with the Italians for several years. Hamilton has been driving for Mercedes since 2013, and at Ferrari he gets the cockpit of the Spaniard Carlos Sainz. Vasseur is Hamilton’s foster father from his time in Formula 1. The Scuderia allegedly pays the megastar up to 70 million euros per year.
“Chances for Mick are good”
It is still unclear who will take over his cockpit at Mercedes. The rumor mill is boiling – and Ralf Schumacher is also getting involved. He brings his nephew Mick into the game. “I think Mick’s chances are good and I also think he deserves the chance,” said the 48-year-old on Sky: “Next to George Russell, he would be a man who can be built up for the future. There I am I’m pretty confident.” Mick Schumacher is entering his second year as a replacement for Hamilton and Russell.
For Ralf Schumacher, saying goodbye to Hamilton raises the question of whether Mercedes should go for experience or put their trust in a young driver. “Mick would certainly be one of the best options in the young area, but of course there is also a Carlos Sainz on the market, even if I think he is more likely to end up at Audi,” said the former racing driver. Now Mercedes Motorsport Director Toto Wolff “just has to be of the same opinion. But so far I’ve only heard positive things from him about Mick.”
Wolff repeatedly emphasizes the value of Schumacher’s work in the simulator. At the virtual media round on Friday, the Mercedes team boss did not answer a question about the possibility of putting the son of seven-time world champion Michael Schumacher in the car in 2025.