Autosport journalists reflects on possibility of Bono joining Ferrari alongside Lewis Hamilton. Peter Bonnington, often known as Bono, with Lewis Hamilton in Ferrari?.

Special bond
The fantastic victory achieved by Lewis Hamilton in the British Grand Prix at Silverstone not only brought the most successful driver in F1 history back to the top step of the podium after two and a half years. The triumph of the seven-time world champion also brought his ‘guardian angel’ at Mercedes, race engineer Peter Bonnington, back into the spotlight. The bond between the two is very close, with ‘Bono’ accompanying Hamilton through all stages of his journey at Brackley, from triumphs to the sporting drama of Abu Dhabi 2021, and then standing by him during the long journey back to success. It was not surprising that he was the one to accompany him on the podium, and the emotion of both did not go unnoticed even from a market perspective.

In Great Britain, some insiders would view a move to Ferrari alongside #44, specifically Bonnington, favorably. The reason is simple: the ‘cultural shock’ of moving from Mercedes to Ferrari could be mitigated by the presence of a crucial support figure for Hamilton’s career, as ‘Bono’ has been over the past decade. Moreover, Maranello would gain an absolutely valuable figure, considered by all F1 protagonists as one of the top references in his specific role. However, between saying and doing, as always in the Circus, there are clauses and contracts in the way.

Clauses and contracts
In the podcast Inside The Piranha Club, journalists Ben Hunt and Rebecca Clancy discussed Lewis Hamilton’s imminent move to Ferrari, addressing the possibility of a similar transfer by Peter Bonnington. “It will be interesting to see what happens with Mercedes and Lewis’s move to Ferrari; I don’t know if Bono will leave,” commented Ben Hunt, a well-known writer for Autosport.com. The hypothesis is that Mercedes has contractually secured Hamilton’s race engineer: “Anti-poaching clause? I’m not sure,” added Ben Hunt. “I’ve asked some people close to Lewis over the last two races, and they don’t know yet. So I think it’s one of those things we will have to wait and see. I’m sure he would like to bring him along because the bond between the two is very solid.” – he pointed out.

From the information reported by the Italian media in March, about a month and a half after Lewis Hamilton’s move to Ferrari was announced, the impression is that Riccardo Adami, current race engineer for Carlos Sainz and previously alongside Sebastian Vettel, remains the favorite to also accompany the British superstar in his move to Maranello. The Italian engineer has been with Ferrari for almost a decade, having arrived in Maranello at the beginning of the 2015 Formula 1 season.

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