Hamilton Will Make Ferrari 'More Attractive' For Adrian Newey Says Capelli

Tuesday, 20 February 2024 at 11:00

Updated at Tuesday, 20 February 2024 at 18:44

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Former F1 driver Ivan Capelli suggested the value that Lewis Hamilton will bring to Ferrari is not mainly his performances but something else.

Ferrari made a shocking, unexpected move when the team was able to convince Lewis Hamilton a few weeks ago to sign a multi-year deal starting from season 2025.

The details of the contract have not been publicly confirmed. However, it has been suggested by multiple news outlets like Crash.net that the seven-time World Champion's salary is in the ballpark of $100 million.

Is that too much? The Italian obviously has to believe it will get a return on their investment. In fact, it already did as share prices of Ferrari rose by about four billion right after it was announced the team signed the 39-year-old.

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However, the ambition of Prancing Horse isn't mainly their worth on the stock market, but winning the Championship. How can the seven-time World Champion help with that? Ivan Capelli told AutoSprint:

"He alone will not distort performance, because he drives the car and does not design it, however, it could open up future horizons for some engineers who until now have not considered a job at Ferrari."

A seven-time world champion joining the team means that there has to be great vision and willingness to make progress. Seeing a big personality like Hamilton joining the team might draw some more talent to Ferrari.

"Seeing Hamilton join Ferrari makes the team more attractive also for the technicians, and above all I say Newey, because in any case we are witnessing a seven-time world champion arriving in Maranello giving the idea that there is a future projected towards something different,"

Newey has played an essential role in Red Bull's success in recent years. He has been with the team even longer than the 39-year-old with Mercedes.

But similar to Hamilton, he is coming close to his retirement. Winning the title with Ferrari is the dream of every driver on the grid and every technician in the paddock. Capelli added:

"Beyond marketing and the return on the commercial level, I believe this is precisely the additional value of Hamilton to Ferrari, I believe this is the focal point of this arrival."

Imagine the most successful driver on the grid joining forces with the most successful technical officer to bring back the prosperous days of the most successful team in the history of F1 - Ferrari. What a story that would be.

Is it possible? Newey mentioned he has already received multiple offers from Ferrari in the past, but he has no reason to leave his team, Red Bull Racing, as it stands.