Lewis Hamilton decision rushed to avoid further Ferrari hurt

Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur has revealed why the team made the decision to announce Lewis Hamilton as their driver for 2025 before the 2024 season had even begun.

Seven-time F1 world champion Hamilton opted to ditch his Mercedes team for Ferrari in order to chase a record-breaking eighth world championship, but the move was announced before the 2024 campaign, with a whole season's action still to come before the move.

It meant that Hamilton spent 2024 at Mercedes knowing he would soon be leaving, while Carlos Sainz spent the year at Ferrari knowing he was being replaced at the end of the year.

It didn't seem to negatively impact Sainz too much on track, however, with the Spaniard claiming two race victories across the season and helping Ferrari finish within 11 points of their first constructors' title since 2008.

That led to Sainz being snapped up by Williams, where he will stay for the start of F1's new era next year with new regulations making their way into the sport.

Now, Vasseur has revealed the reason for Ferrari's decision to announce the Hamilton-Sainz swap early, hinting at Red Bull's uncertainty around whether Max Verstappen would be staying throughout 2025 being evidence for his strategy paying off.

"Things like this can cause people in the team to lose focus," Vasseur told Auto Motor und Sport. "Look at Red Bull and what's happened there in recent weeks.

"There were only rumours about Verstappen, and that's one of McLaren's strengths, they've managed to stay out of all these stories and controversies. That's why I announced Lewis' signing last year before the season started.

"If I had done that between Imola and Monte Carlo, many would have panicked. That way, Carlos was in the picture from the start and was able to digest the situation before everything started. His focus was on his job."

Hamilton's Ferrari start falls short

Despite the timing around the announcement and the year that Hamilton had to get used to the idea of racing with the most successful outfit in F1 history, his first season at the Scuderia has been mostly disappointing so far.

Hamilton has not yet managed to secure a grand prix podium for Ferrari, while his team-mate has earned five in 2025, and the Brit sits down in sixth in the drivers' championship.

Leclerc leads Hamilton by 46 points after 16 race weekends, and Hamilton's negative demeanour has been ever-present throughout the year.

With new regulations entering the sport in 2026, both Vasseur and Hamilton will be desperately hoping the seven-time world champion can rediscover his form, and the Scuderia can provide him with machinery capable of wins, otherwise the signing could go down as an error of judgment from the Frenchman and his team.

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