Ferrari is changing: Laurent Mekies’ final race at Silverstone
The anticipated handover we mentioned in recent weeks is ready to take place at Ferrari. Laurent Mekies is bidding farewell, not only on paper but also in terms of his operational role at the Maranello pit wall. Unless there are any last-minute surprises, the Frenchman, who will become the team principal of AlphaTauri, will don the colors of Ferrari on the track for the last time at the Silverstone circuit this weekend.
Diego Ioverno ready as sporting director
As confirmed by the correspondents at Silverstone, the relay race between Ferrari’s sporting director and his successor Diego Ioverno is at the starting line. After six years, Diego Ioverno will return to a leadership position during race weekends.
Laurent Mekies, described by the new team principal Frederic Vasseur as a “pillar” of the Prancing Horse at the start of the 2023 Formula One season, reached an agreement with AlphaTauri in the spring. In recent months, a power struggle naturally ensued between the Scuderia in Maranello and Red Bull to release the Frenchman before the end of his contract.
Frederic Vasseur insisted on Laurent Mekies continuing in his role for the necessary time to prepare for a succession. The distance dispute with Red Bull (irritated by the fact that Ferrari was “fishing” among its technicians) seems to be resolved now: Laurent Mekies will be released in mid-July and will take command of the Faenza pit wall after the gardening period. We will see him in action at the beginning of 2024, in new colors.
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As for his replacement, Diego Ioverno was already present at the Ferrari pit wall in Canada and Austria. Fred Vasseur has increasingly involved him in activities within the team and relations with the Federation, but it should not be forgotten that the engineer from Bologna had previously held a similar role until 2017. For the Scuderia in Maranello, Laurent Mekies’ departure is the last in a series of exits that have involved the Maranello team, following that of former team principal Mattia Binotto and former head of aerodynamics David Sanchez. An era has officially closed, but what is more important is that a new one has begun.
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