Jérôme D’Ambrosio: « Here in Italy, I already feel at home »
At 39, Jérôme D'Ambrosio will be the perfect deputy for Fred Vasseur, the director of Scuderia Ferrari. He will therefore be in constant contact with Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc.
Before sitting on the pit wall, D’Ambrosio was a Formula 1 driver from 2011 to 2012 with Virgin Racing and then with Lotus. In 2014, he joined the Blancpain Endurance Series with Bentley. He ended his racing career in Formula E, first with Dragon Racing. Then, in 2018, he joined the Indian team Mahindra.
In 2023, he joins Mercedes and becomes the assistant to Toto Wolff.
Just like Jacky Ickx, not to mention Olivier Gendebien, Willy Mairesse, Paul Frère, or André Pilette who were all drivers for Scuderia Ferrari, few have contributed to the management of the team founded by the Commendatore.
Since October 4th, Jerome D’Ambrosio has been in Maranello as the right-hand man of Frederic Vasseur.
« A dream come true. It’s a country with so much passion for motorsport, plus my daughter only wears Ferrari clothes now, so I’m happy!
The two heads of the team have offices facing each other in Maranello.
The Belgian will divide his schedule between circuit tasks and factory work, based on the team’s requirements. Already, things are working quite well.
D’Ambrosio did not come to Maranello alone, as Loic Serra, the technical director, followed him. An asset for the Scuderia, as the two former Mercedes members have collaborated with the seven-time world champion, Hamilton.
« Lewis is extremely motivated by the idea of being part of our team as well as taking on the new challenge with Ferrari. »
In addition to his role as deputy team director, Ferrari has also appointed D’Ambrosio as the head of the Driver Academy, the training center located in Maranello.
« Our boys will have Lewis and Charles as role models, two fantastic drivers who are at different stages of their careers. The presence of the team’s two reserve drivers, Zhou and Giovinazzi, is just as important for them. »
Guyanu Zhou has also started working on the simulator. And the team’s expectations for the Chinese driver are clear: There is a lot of work to do behind the scenes, especially in the simulator, comparing all the data with the engineers and supporting the guys on the track.
We hope that the Belgian’s dream will continue for a long time alongside Ferrari: « Joining Ferrari is a dream come true that enhances the desire to do well and win races. »
