Something in starting to move regarding Ferrari’s new structure for the Formula 1 Racing Division. If everything is silent in Maranello, as Ferrari is still counting on the presence of outgoing Mattia Binotto until the end of the year, this does not mean that the situation has crystallized like a snowflake.
The first changes are easier to expect from Hinwil. Alfa Romeo has so far been persistently silent without even once commenting on rumors of a possible move of Frederic Vasseur to the role of Ferrari team principal. Indeed, rumors from within Alfa Romeo spoke of a French manager who was still firmly in place in Switzerland.
Now the chessboard is destined to change, because the first pawns have to move. It is normal, in fact, for Fred Vasseur to leave Alfa Romeo Racing first and for Scuderia Ferrari to officially announce the arrival of the new team principal in Maranello only later.
Rumors indicate that Sauber’s official departure statement for Frederic Vasseur will be made public at the beginning of next week. The French manager has led the Swiss team since 12 July 2017, when the aeronautical engineer from Draveil accepted the challenge to take over from Monisha Kaltenborn to lead the team to date.
Fred Vasseur was not a full-time team principal, given that he devoted half as much time to the role of Alfa Romeo team principal, also having other important interests to look after outside the Formula 1 team.
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The Swiss team must now find a replacement: it is clear that a future must be built for the team which at the end of next year will see Alfa Romeo leave. At the same time, the influence of the Stellantis Group will start to decrease more and more, as power shifts to Audi. The next team boss will have to manage a phase that could be a “bridge” in view of a more direct involvement of Audi.
Sauber will therefore be looking for a team principal, while Frederic will be able to accept Ferrari’s offer. It is very probable that the Frenchman will officially become operational in Maranello from the beginning of the new year, but there are those who point out they have seen him in Emilia-Romagna (a region in northern Italy) because he has already found a home near the Maranello factory to be immediately functional for his new role.
John Elkann and Benedetto Vigna, therefore, would implement the plan they had drawn up, leaving Mattia Binotto’s exit as the end of the 2022 season, to start 2023 with the new wave.
If project 675, a car which is in an advanced stage of design in Maranello, should meet expectations, it is reasonable to expect a competitive single-seater. Fred Vasseur has the opportunity to turn the page with a car that should be able to challenge Red Bull and Mercedes.
The Frenchman will have to make corrections to the structure by indicating a technical director (and there is more frequent talk of Simone Resta’s return) and the changes he will want to make to the organization chart, especially on the key roles that have been criticized in the last few years.
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