A prominent technician leaves Mercedes for Ferrari but will only be available for the 2026 Formula 1 project. The trend set by Frederic Vasseur continues at Ferrari, opting to partially abandon talent selection from Maranello’s nursery to make acquisitions from other teams.
The standout name for the Italian team is Loic Serra, coming from Mercedes.
A highly experienced technician, the Frenchman serves as the director of performance for the German team. After working alongside Aldo Costa, he replaced Mike Ellis in 2019 and is now gearing up to address the chronic difficulties encountered in Maranello in understanding the tires.
But all that glitters is not gold, at least not yet. Loic Serra will not be available to the team until late in the year. Therefore, only for the 2025 project, which is now nearing completion.
The reason? The strict gardening leave rules imposed by Mercedes.
Like most teams, the Germans enforce a lengthy “forced” break for technicians leaving the team, minimizing the transfer of knowledge and secrets to rival teams as much as possible.
Ferrari: Rediscovered Attractiveness, But Watch Out for Mekies
The fact remains that the Prancing Horse seems to have regained some of the attractiveness that appeared to be lost.
Fred Vasseur’s leadership seems to have reignited growth prospects on a global scale, and now technicians are willing to sacrifice some family needs to reach Maranello. The news of Loic Serra accompanies the less favorable one suggesting that Laurent Mekies, the new TP at AlphaTauri, is ready to bring some crucial figures from the Prancing Horse with him. The Frenchman, in possession of direct contacts with many of the individuals engaged in red, seems to be planning to do some shopping in Maranello before starting his experience in Faenza.
Source: f1ingenerale
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