Hamilton prefers to start at Ferrari away from prying eyes

Lewis Hamilton will not drive for Ferrari during the end-of-season tests in Abu Dhabi. The seven-time world champion, who will join the Scuderia in 2025, has himself ruled out this possibility, despite the interest of his future boss Fred Vasseur. A decision that postpones his first laps in red until next year.

« I know Fred wanted this to happen », ” Hamilton said. « As for me, I was torn. Driving the red car for the first time in Abu Dhabi doesn’t excite me. In a perfect world, you could drive the car without being seen and do the first laps next year. »

The British driver, still under contract with Mercedes until December 31, mentioned several reasons behind this choice. Commitments with his current sponsors are already waiting for him in December, especially in Malaysia with Petronas. When I raised the issue with Toto, they had already planned all these appointments where I have to go see the sponsors and bid them farewell. So I don’t think it would have been allowed, even if I had asked to do it. But that doesn’t bother me because I wasn’t planning on doing it, he explained.

The champion does not hide the consequences of this decision on his preparation, « Am I missing something? Certainly. This undoubtedly delays the process and makes the beginning of the year more difficult, but we will do our best to catch up on lost time. »

On the Mercedes side, Toto Wolff confirmed his team’s position, « Fred didn’t ask me », had specified the boss of the German team in Las Vegas. « We have contractual agreements with our sponsors. We are organizing farewell events for Lewis. He and I briefly discussed it, and he said ‘I guess it’s not going to work out.’ And I replied ‘Yes, I don’t think it’s going to work out.’ »

A smooth transition

To remedy this delay, Ferrari is already preparing an alternative program. The British driver is expected to take the wheel of a car from previous years on the private Fiorano circuit in January. These tests, away from the public and media attention, will allow Hamilton to familiarize himself with his new environment before the official pre-season tests in Bahrain.

Fred Vasseur, who knows Hamilton well since their collaboration in GP2 in 2006, downplays the impact of this delay, “I’m not sure he needs a lot of time to acclimate. He is experienced enough to be fast from day one, or at least very quickly. We will have one or two days of testing with old cars, plus the tests in Bahrain, and that will be enough.”

The post-season tests in Abu Dhabi will see several drivers discovering their new team for 2025. Carlos Sainz, whom Hamilton will replace at Ferrari, will notably have the opportunity to test his future Williams. A crossover that illustrates the complexity of transitions in Formula 1, where contracts and commercial commitments often dictate the pace of team changes.

The situation does not seem to worry Vasseur too much, who accepts Mercedes’ position. “There is a contract. We must respect it. And it is not because we are doing something for Carlos that everyone else has to do the same,” he acknowledged during the press conference in Las Vegas. A pragmatic approach that bodes well for a smooth transition for Hamilton’s arrival in Maranello, even if it will have to wait until 2025.