Fred Vasseur explains why Ferrari announced Lewis Hamilton so early. Fred Vasseur on why Ferrari chose to announce Lewis Hamilton so early.

With the SF-24 unveiled, some are already thinking about the 2025 Formula 1 championship: Fred Vasseur explains why Ferrari chose to announce Lewis Hamilton before the start of the 2024 Formula 1 season.

Beyond the curiosity about the new 2024 car, Ferrari’s team principal, Fred Vasseur, has explained to journalists why Ferrari wanted to announce Lewis Hamilton before the start of the championship. The news has captivated everyone, dominating the headlines of every sports newspaper the day after. Lewis Hamilton joining Ferrari is, for many, the “move of the century,” expressing, on one hand, the enduring allure of the Prancing Horse and, on the other, the desire of a superstar to once again make history.

Announced in early February, the official union between Lewis Hamilton and Ferrari has raised some doubts about the timing. For some, the announcement of the Englishman’s arrival in Maranello in 2025 could create issues within the Maranello team in the upcoming championship. There is a fear that Carlos Sainz and Ferrari might experience this final season together as “separated under the same roof.”

During the press conference granted to the media on the day of the SF-24 presentation, Frédéric Vasseur wanted to clarify this point.

The French team principal stated regarding the presentation: “The launch of the car, the first laps today… as you can imagine, it’s a crucial stage of the season. We are fully focused on 2024.” – he pointed out.

Then the preamble he wanted to make before any questions: “Now I would like to quickly go back to the announcement we made weeks ago about Lewis. It is undoubtedly a tremendous opportunity for the team.” – the French manager added.

“It will be a challenge for everyone, but we now want to be focused on 2024,” he explained. “We don’t want any kind of distraction; that’s why we made the announcement so early. It was important for us to do it before the season to be focused on 2024. I am absolutely certain that Carlos will give his all until the last corner of the last lap of the season. Not only that: I am sure the team will fully support Carlos,” Fred Vasseur asserted, before asking not to attempt further questions on the subject and to continue with the topics related to the car presentation.

Source: f1ingenerale