Hamilton joins Ferrari from 2025!

[Bagwan]

Good for Lewis , for snagging all this cash in the deal , but I don't think he and Chuck will get along , so I don't see a smooth ride at all .

They are too alike in my eyes .

If Ferrari stock is up that much because of this , it is now time to sell .

[F1nKS]

Wow, what a way to kick off the 2024 with "Silly Season 2024".

I'm not surprised. I had seen some hints from stories covering Sainz negotiations with Ferrari (but there is always misinformation and posturing). Sainz had to feel like he had been punched in the gut. His performance was just as good as Leclerc's, and if they ever got a car to challenge Red Bull, Ferrari would be in a good place to take the championship with relatively young drivers.

Of course, if they get a good car, Hamilton is going to win with it. It will be interesting to see the direction that Mercedes goes to fill his seat.

[Used to be Starter]

It will be interesting to see the direction that Mercedes goes to fill his seat.

That may be one of the more interesting stories of 2024.

[Nitrodaze]

That may be one of the more interesting stories of 2024.

Along with what the dynamics between Russell and Hamilton would look like on track this season. I am expecting some fireworks.

[The Black Knight]

Maybe it was Lewis who wanted the option, so he could get out of the contract if a better opportunity arises?

It was Lewis that wanted it. No team wants an opt out clause like that for a driver. Stability is key to teams. I don't see Mercedes winning another title until 2027/8 at the earliest. Ferrari have the least modifications to do to their Engines under the 2026 rules. If the Mercedes engineers had listened to Lewis a year and a half ago he'd still be with the team and they'd probably have a RBR matching car now. Lewis left because he isin the twilight of his career and can't wait for Mercedes to catch up. Ferrari are in a very good/best position for 2026 of all teams on the grid.

[airshifter]

I still see it as a strange move unless Lewis just wants a shot at another title... soon. With the rules shake up coming in '26 the field could change considerable from the current.

As for teams listening to drivers, I really don't see it as a point myself. ALL the drivers want the fastest car, and ALL the teams want it as well. But other than input on what already exists, no driver on the grid is an Adrian Newey.

[The Black Knight]

If after a year of failing to make a car faster you don't listen when a driver of Hamilton's calibre turns around to you and says there's fundamental issues with a car and it had gone in the wrong direction then, to be frank, you deservefail.

And clearly they were wrong considering they admitted it later.

Is Hamilton a Newey? No. That doesn't mean he can't tell with 30+ years of experience of driving different cars that there are fundamental design issues present and clearly he was right.

[airshifter]

The fundamental issue is that the car isn't fast enough to win most of the time. Any driver with experience can point those kinds of things out. But if they can't identify in specific what is wrong, they are really of no use in leading the team in the right direction. For all we know all of the teams have missed in some of the fundamentals of this spec, and performance should be significantly higher than what RB is experiencing. But the reality is that performance is measured through the field of competitors, and that Merc just isn't on the very top.

In a new and much most complex formula the fact that some of the best engineers in the world can't get it right all the time proves to me that the driver input is nothing but a gauge of where the car sits in the field. Had the W13 and W14 dominated the races, I'd bet that the input from the drivers would be that development in that direction needed to continue.

[Matthew]

After seeing the win for Carlos Sainz at Australia GP, the Ferrari management must be thinking about their decision of replacing him with Hamilton after this season.

[airshifter]

I'm sure Carlos would like to make Vasseur regret the decision. But really, most likely it's based on marketing value as much as driver performance. Of course this can backfire if Lewis slows down a lot, but chances are that won't happen. And since Carlos and Lewis won't be in the same car at the same time, unless Carlos can beat Charles soundly over a year and Lewis can't.... and even then it's speculation.

If nothing else though, Carlos is going to drive up his value and opportunities if he keeps it up with good drives.