Mattia Binotto, ex-Ferrari F1 chief, admitted he wouldn’t have recruited Lewis Hamilton.
If Mattia Binotto had still been in charge of the F1 team, Lewis Hamilton would not have made the blockbuster switch to Ferrari, according to Binotto.
In February, it was a surprise to the Formula 1 community when Hamilton revealed he would depart from Mercedes at the season’s end to join Ferrari.
The seven-time world champion will team up with Charles Leclerc starting in 2025, taking the place of Carlos Sainz, who will be moving to Williams.
However, in an interview with the Italian newspaper Corriere dello Sport, newly appointed Audi head Binotto, who previously served as team principal at Ferrari from 2019 to 2022, confessed that he would have not chosen to sign Hamilton.
When asked whether Hamilton’s move would have occurred while he was overseeing Ferrari, Binotto responded: “No.” “He made a good choice to join Ferrari, I support his decision.”
Binotto explained that in his opinion, Ferrari should focus on prioritizing Leclerc.
He mentioned that Ferrari had concentrated on different drivers. “If the talent is Leclerc, then I believe he is the one who should be supported in reaching the goal in some manner.”
Hamilton will link up with his former ART Grand Prix boss Fred Vasseur, who took over from Binotto, at Ferrari.
The Briton, who will be 40 when he makes his Ferrari debut, hopes to follow in Michael Schumacher’s footsteps at the famous Italian team.
“It’s been a rollercoaster of emotions from the moment I signed the contract – telling my boss, that was terrifying,” Hamilton told The Times.
“But it is so exciting because I remember as a kid watching Michael. Every driver watches that car and you’re like, ‘What would it be like to sit in the red cockpit?’”
Hamilton joins Ferrari aiming to claim a record-breaking eighth world championship and end the Scuderia’s barren spell without a world title.