Lewis Hamilton is to work with Carlos Sainz’s former race engineer Riccardo Adami in his first season with Ferrari in F1 2025 after all, it has been claimed.

Hamilton has officially joined Ferrari from Mercedes ahead of the new season, having announced in February last year that he had signed a multi-year contract to join the Scuderia from F1 2025.

Uncertainty over Lewis Hamilton’s new Ferrari race engineer cleared up

The switch sees Hamilton, the most decorated driver in F1 history with seven World Championships and more than 100 race wins and pole positions to his name, link up with the sport’s most successful team.

Hamilton’s move will see him work with a new race engineer after PlanetF1.com revealed last summer that long-serving race engineer Peter Bonnington would not be following him to Ferrari having been rewarded with an expanded role at Mercedes.

Bonnington has been promoted to head of race engineering at Mercedes for F1 2025, but is expected to continue his race engineering duties with Hamilton’s successor Andrea Kimi Antonelli.

Adami, who previously worked as race engineer to Sainz (2021-24) and four-time World Champion Sebastian Vettel (2015-20), had been widely expected to be the voice in Hamilton’s ear from F1 2025.

Respected reporter Guiliano Duchessa revealed last spring that Hamilton had called Vettel “some time ago” for an initial impression of Adami, with Vettel giving a glowing endorsement of his “excellent” former race engineer.

However, Ferrari team principal Fred Vassuer had seemed to cast some doubt over the Hamilton/Adami link up at last year’s Las Vegas Grand Prix.

Sky F1 reporter Ted Kravitz claimed Vasseur was non-committal when asked to confirm that Adami would be Hamilton’s race engineer for F1 2025, commenting: “I don’t know. We’re going to have to discuss it over the winter.”

But the confusion appears to have been cleared up, with Italian publication La Gazzetta dello Sport reporting that Adami is indeed to become Hamilton’s new race engineer.

The same source also claims that Hamilton’s inner circle at Ferrari is also taking shape, with manager Marc Hynes set to maintain ties to the seven-time World Champion.

Hynes, a former racing driver who briefly worked as a driver development boss at the now-defunct Marussia F1 team, reunited with Hamilton last year.

Hamilton is also set to be joined at Ferrari by an array of photographers, trainers, security staff and “at least one figure for communication and public relations outside Formula 1.”

Despite his new surroundings, Hamilton will find a number of familiar faces upon his arrival at Ferrari.

Vasseur oversaw the British driver’s title-winning GP2 season in 2006 as boss of the ART Grand Prix team, with the Frenchman appointed as Ferrari team principal in December 2022 after spells with Renault (now Alpine) and Sauber.

Former Marussia and Lotus-Renault F1 driver Jerome d’Ambrosio arrived at Ferrari last October as deputy team principal and head of the team’s junior academy.

D’Ambrosio’s move came after a brief stint at Mercedes, where he served as driver development director and stood in for Toto Wolff in late 2023 as the team boss recovered from knee surgery.

Hamillton will also link up with former Mercedes engineer Loic Serra, who is believed to be a trusted ally of the seven-time World Champion having shared Hamilton’s reservations over the Brackley-based team’s failed zero-pod design concept across 2022/23.

Serra was initially recruited to work under technical director Enrico Cardile, but has led development of Ferrari’s F1 2025 car – codenamed Project 677 – since the Italian’s move to Aston Martin.

It was claimed earlier this week that Ferrari have moved the cockpit position of their car further back for F1 2025.

It comes after seating position proved a major irritation for Hamilton during his penultimate season with Mercedes in 2023, with the veteran claiming the cockpit “is too close to the front” of the car.

It is unclear whether Hamilton has had any direct influence on Ferrari’s decision to adjust the cockpit position for the new season.

On Thursday, Hamilton issued his first public statement since his move to Ferrari became official.

Writing on his official LinkedIn page, he said: “I could not be more excited for the year ahead. Moving to Scuderia Ferrari, there’s a lot to reflect on.

“To anyone considering their next move in 2025: embrace the change. Whether you’re switching industries, learning a new skill, or even just taking on new challenges, remember that reinvention is powerful. Your next opportunity is always within reach.

“Here’s to 2025—a year of embracing new opportunities, staying hungry, and driving forward with purpose.

“Let’s make it one to remember. Andiamo.”