George Russell Warns Lewis Hamilton of...

George Russell Warns Lewis Hamilton of…Following Bono’s Mercedes…Read More

George Russell believes that Lewis Hamilton may face an adjustment period working with a new race engineer after Hamilton’s high-profile move to Ferrari for the 2025 F1 season. This follows the promotion of Hamilton’s long-time race engineer, Pete Bonnington, at Mercedes, which put an end to any speculation that Bonnington might follow Hamilton to Ferrari.

Hamilton, who announced earlier this year that he would be joining Ferrari on a multi-year deal from 2025, will leave behind a legacy of remarkable success at Mercedes. Since moving from McLaren to Mercedes in 2013, Hamilton has claimed six of his seven World Championships and shattered records, including becoming the first driver to surpass 100 Grand Prix victories and pole positions.

While Hamilton’s move marks the end of an era, he is contractually barred from attempting to lure Mercedes staff to Ferrari. Mercedes has recently promoted Bonnington, also known as “Bono,” to the role of head of race engineering, effective immediately. Despite the promotion, Bonnington will continue to work closely with Hamilton for the remainder of the 2024 season.

Looking ahead, Bonnington is expected to serve as the race engineer for one of Mercedes’ two drivers in 2025, with rising star Andrea Kimi Antonelli widely tipped as Hamilton’s successor. The teenager has been making waves in the junior categories, and his promotion to a full-time seat at Mercedes appears imminent.

Meanwhile, Hamilton is likely to inherit Carlos Sainz’s current race engineer, Riccardo Adami, at Ferrari. Adami previously worked with four-time World Champion Sebastian Vettel during his tenure at Ferrari from 2015 to 2020. Reports earlier this year suggested that Hamilton had reached out to Vettel for insights on working with Adami, signaling Hamilton’s focus on ensuring a smooth transition at Ferrari.

In a media session ahead of the Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort, Russell acknowledged that Hamilton’s transition to a new race engineer would take time, given the close bond that he and Bonnington had developed over the years at Mercedes. “I think relationships take time to build, and trust and respect take time to earn as well,” said Russell. He added that working with new colleagues always requires an adjustment period, and that Hamilton would likely experience this when joining Ferrari.

The bond between Hamilton and Bonnington has been one of the defining partnerships in modern F1. Their collaboration has helped Hamilton achieve remarkable success at Mercedes, and Bonnington has been a key figure in the team’s dominance. Russell is optimistic about Bonnington’s promotion at Mercedes, seeing it as a positive development for the team. Having worked briefly with Bonnington during the 2020 Sakhir Grand Prix when he substituted for Hamilton, Russell expressed his excitement about the prospect of working more closely with Bonnington in his new, broader role.

“Bono’s been an integral part of the team’s success for so many years, even going back to the Brawn days,” said Russell. “It’s great news that he’s staying with us next year. There were a lot of rumors about him possibly going with Lewis, but this promotion can only strengthen our team even more.”

Amid these personnel changes, Ferrari’s preparations for the 2025 season are already well underway. According to reports from Italy, Ferrari’s new car, codenamed “Project 677,” will feature a revised wheelbase and a switch to a pullrod front suspension, which is currently used by Red Bull and McLaren. This design is expected to enhance the car’s aerodynamics, particularly in the complex underfloor area, which is crucial under the current ground-effect regulations.

Hamilton’s arrival at Ferrari is believed to have influenced these design choices, with the new car expected to align more closely with Hamilton’s driving style and that of his future teammate, Charles Leclerc, than with Sainz’s preferences. Ferrari’s suspension setup has been a topic of scrutiny throughout the ground-effect era, and these changes represent a significant shift in their technical approach.

As Ferrari prepares for 2025, their technical leadership will also see changes. Former Mercedes engineer Loic Serra is set to take over from Enrico Cardile, who will join Aston Martin. Serra is known for sharing Hamilton’s concerns about Mercedes’ zero-pod design concept in previous seasons, suggesting that the two could work closely together at Ferrari.

With these developments, Hamilton’s move to Ferrari is shaping up to be one of the most intriguing storylines in F1, and his ability to adapt to new surroundings, including a new race engineer, will be key to his continued success.