Ferrari is parting ways with its technical director, Enrico Cardile, making way for Adrian Newey

After a good number of fantastic recruitments lately at Ferrari, whether at the level of drivers (Lewis Hamilton for 2025) or technical managers (Loïc Serra, former director of performance at Mercedes, who will join the Maranello team in October), the Italian team has just announced a significant departure in the person of Enrico Cardile, putting an end to many years of collaboration.

Originally from Tuscany, Cardile joined Ferrari in 2005 as head of the thermal department to work on the design of GTE and GT3 models for GT and endurance championships. Thanks to his expertise and talent, his cars won legendary races such as the 24 Hours of Le Mans and the 24 Hours of Daytona.

Eleven years later, he made his entrance into the premier discipline of motor racing as head of aerodynamic development. Since January 2021, he has been at the helm of the chassis department for Ferrari, a position he has continued to hold until now, even as he was also appointed technical director of chassis and aerodynamics in 2023. Following his departure, Fred Vasseur will lead the chassis department on an interim basis.

Even if his destination is not yet official, the 49-year-old Italian would be expected to join Silverstone and Aston Martin with a notice period agreement that has been signed. He would join the aerodynamics department of the British team currently led by Dan Fallows. A very important recruit for Aston Martin, which has just also enlisted Andy Cowell, former head of the power unit at Mercedes, and which has been going through difficult weeks lately with mixed performances and a growing gap from the race leaders.

In the statement released by the prancing horse team, it is indicated that « Scuderia Ferrari announces that Enrico Cardile is leaving the company, thus giving up his role as technical director of the chassis department. After nearly two decades at Ferrari, Cardile has handed in his notice and, consequently, with immediate effect, as an interim measure, the chassis department will be supervised by the team principal, Frédéric Vasseur. Everyone at Ferrari thanks Enrico for his hard work over the years. »

A difficult decision to make after so many years together. Ferrari will therefore have to find a replacement for him. Among the options considered, the one leading to Adrian Newey seems obvious and attractive, even if discussions between the British engineer and the Italian team have cooled down recently. Adrian Newey has announced his departure from Red Bull and Aston Martin is also eyeing him. Two possibilities are therefore on the table: either he joins Cardile as a consultant at Aston Martin, or he takes the position of Technical Director at Ferrari.

In the meantime, Ferrari will have to focus on the performance of its SF-24, which is currently second in the constructors’ championship but closely followed by McLaren, which has closed the gap to just 7 points, and Mercedes, which could also join the fight, providing us with an exciting second half of the season.