Ferrari’s F1 racing director, Laurent Mekies, has now bid farewell to his position at the Scuderia, as he prepares to take on the role of AlphaTauri’s team principal starting with the next Formula 1 season.
Back in April, AlphaTauri had already made it public that the French manager would be replacing their long-serving team boss, Franz Tost, who will be stepping down at the conclusion of the current Formula 1 championship. In addition, they also appointed former FIA executive Peter Bayer as the team’s first dedicated CEO, overseeing various key organizational changes.
Despite the announcement of his move, Laurent Mekies continued to fulfill his responsibilities as the sporting director while the Maranello team until now and Red Bull worked out the details regarding his departure from the Italian side and his commencement at Faenza. Now, it is official that the Scuderia has confirmed Laurent Mekies’ departure from his role at the end of the current week.
“Laurent Mekies’ time at Scuderia Ferrari comes to an end this week,” Ferrari officially revealed earlier today with a post on its social media accounts – “The Racing Director will not be in Belgium and he leaves the Prancing Horse after four and a half seasons, during which time the team took seven wins. The entire team thanks him for his great contribution during those years.” – we can read in the press release.
According to information obtained by Motorsport, there have been discussions between Scuderia Ferrari’s boss, Fred Vasseur, and Red Bull’s Christian Horner, resulting in the decision to put Laurent Mekies on gardening leave until the end of the season. Starting on 1st January 2024, the Frenchman will officially assume his new position at AlphaTauri.
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Scuderia Ferrari has further clarified that Diego Ioverno, a highly esteemed Ferrari veteran with 23 years of experience, will be stepping into the role of sporting director previously held by Laurent Mekies.
“As from the Belgian Grand Prix, part of Laurent’s duties on the pitwall will be carried out by Diego Ioverno, who takes on the role of Sporting Director,” Ferrari informs – “He will be responsible for all sporting matters, as well as liaising with the FIA. Along with his colleagues on the pitwall, Matteo Togninalli, Head of Track Engineering and Ravin Jain, Race Strategist, he will report directly to team principal, Fred Vasseur.” – the Maranello team concluded.
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