🏁 Hamilton's Shocking Move to Ferrari

PLP Season 2 Edition 5

27 Days Until the 2024 Season Opening Weekend

Well folks it’s February 2nd and you know what that means… we’ll have cars on track this month. Hype is building faster than my wpm reading pace. Important update Re: Guenther book progress: 32/282 pages (11% complete). Solid progress but gotta pick it up. There’s pictures, so that’s good news.

It’s been a long (actually the break went kinda quick?) and cold (actually the offseason has been QUITE spicy) winter, and we’ve earned some hot racing action. You’ll see some pre-pre-season testing starting to happen, car launches starting today (yay Haas), and before you know it it’s official pre-season testing, and then Bahrain. Oh, and literally the biggest news since PLP’s inception dropped yesterday…

Quick Quiz!

Answer revealed at the bottom ⬇

Last Week: It’s very possible that the time in which you read last week’s edition had a significant impact on your answer to this question. While the intended answer is Verstappen and Piastri, the Norris contract news dropped about 5 hours after sending. And as of today, answer B is also now correct. So if you chose Hamilton and Norris, give yourself credit for your ability to predict the future.

Hamilton to Ferrari in Shocking Move

Forget any potential silly season speculation we had for 2024, because nothing will top this news. In what is likely the most massive driver transfer in the history of the sport and the biggest F1 news in years, 7-time champion Lewis Hamilton will be driving for Ferrari after this season, starting in 2025.

Everyone take a moment.. breathe it in.. this is HUGE. I was honestly stunned. There’s so many implications, speculation on the exact reasons… and so many spicy memes. Seriously give it a quick search on X (Twitter) there’s too many to post here.

Many outlets reported the news early on Thursday, followed by both Mercedes and Ferrari confirming that Hamilton had activated an opt out clause in the 2 year deal he signed last August. He has agreed to a “multi-year” deal with the Scuderia. Ferrari’s market cap shot up $7B on the news. Wow.

Lewis has stated in the past that he saw himself retiring with Mercedes, but this announcement has many speculating on what exactly changed. Thoughts floating around point to the poor team performance the past two years, or his friendship with Vasseur, or simply the allure of Ferrari (where many of the greats end up at some point), or the desire for a new challenge. Ferrari also recently poached Loic Serra, who was Head of Vehicle Performance at the Silver Arrows and was aligned with Hamilton’s concerns about the 2022 car - possibly another clue.

In a statement Lewis included, “the time is right for me to take this step and I’m excited to be taking on a new challenge.” Toto Wolff said “We knew our partnership would come to a natural end… we accept Lewis’s decision to seek a fresh challenge.” But whether it’s really a loss of confidence in Toto and Co., or a promising plan coming from the Prancing Horses (but likely a combination of many reasons), bottom line is this is shake up of historical proportions whose effects we will continue to see for years to come.

Alright so don’t forget silly season just yet - clearly this leaves a void at Mercedes (Russell has got to be thrilled with this news, and there’s bound to be many names floated for the seat), as well as a void in Carlos Sainz’s heart. Carlos put out a classy statement on the news (it’s reported that major stakeholders, including the current Ferrari drivers had known this was coming), and he’ll land a seat somewhere - with current guesses being Merc to complete the swap, along with Audi, Aston, or even Williams. It will also be fascinating to see Leclerc v Lewis.. how will their competition play out? The team tends not to favor one driver - will that change?

To read more, check out:

• Why Hamilton decided now was the time to jump

• Winners and Losers from “the decision” (forget LeBron, I now dub this an F1 term)

• Driver options for Mercedes after Hamilton’s dramatic move

F1 To Andretti: No Thanks

The Lewis announcement could not have come at a better time for F1, just one day after they got dragged on social media for denying Andretti + Cadillac’s bid to enter the sport in 2025. The team had even begun working on their car concept and hired dozens of people before F1 shut the door on commercial grounds saying “F1 would bring value to the Andretti brand rather than the other way around”, and raised doubts on team competitiveness.

Fans were not pleased at the reasons given, especially when you have current teams on the grid (not to name names..) that are either uncompetitive or don’t have nearly the appeal and name recognition of Andretti - which represents motorsport royalty. The group “strongly disagreed” with the ruling, with 1978 F1 champ Mario Andretti tweeting “I’m devastated”. The door is still open for the team to reapply for 2028 - but it’s clear we’ll be sticking with 10 teams at least until then.

Norris Extends with McLaren

Mere hours after last week’s edition - and just 1 day after the Leclerc contract announcement - McLaren revealed that they had agreed on a multi-year contract extension with Lando Norris. Like Ferrari’s (now double) news we still don’t know the exact terms, but the team has described it as “into 2026 and beyond”. It will likely be longer than just a 1 year extension on his previous 2025 expiry, and don’t be surprised if it’s into 2028 (like Max).. or even longer?

After the signing, news came out that he had brief talks with Red Bull. These “little discussions” were simply an example of team and driver doing due diligence, and nothing serious ever came of it. When probed deeper about a more direct competition with Max if they had become teammates, he replied “I don’t think I’d ever be scared of going against anyone, but even if you enter a team, are you in a position to challenge someone straight away and are comfortable with that? I think it’s a ‘no’ for any driver”

A debate emerged about this mentality, but he’s just being honest here. If anyone could challenge Max directly, it’s probably Lando, and I absolutely believe he isn’t scared. By why do that when McLaren is on the up and up, and you could potentially challenge him as a clear #1 driver and rival? Seems like the better bet.

Windy City GP: Perhaps Just a Light Breeze

Rumors flew this week as it was discovered that F1 applied for variations of the trademark “Formula 1 Chicago Grand Prix” and “Grand Prix of Chicago”. While it’s more a protective measure, it’s clear that the powers that be are toying with the idea - which makes sense given the investment the sport has been putting into the U.S. market. While some fans have predictably whinged (British English. Verb, Noun. 1. to cry in a fretful way 2. to complain) about another street race, the inaugural NASCAR race in the city last summer could possibly serve as a jumping off point.

However, expectations were quickly tempered a day later with city official Brian Hopkins quickly poo-pooing the idea: “I’m told that F1 typically requires a 10-year minimum deal. And that appears to be non-negotiable. The conversation [with the city] did not get much past that.” F1 would be considerably more expensive to put on and require a bigger track. Hosting two race series in town would be a challenge, and city official #2 (Brendan Reilly) said “It would have to be one or the other.”

NASCAR was able to call “First!”, but has just two years remaining in a three year race deal with the city… so who knows after that?

Mercedes: Year in Review

Well this came at the perfect time…

What could more clearly demonstrate the high expectations and “fall” of Mercedes when your 6-time champ (he had one with McLaren) and one of the GOATs Lewis Hamilton bails after a P2 Constructors’ finish? Two poor car concepts in a row and the years of domination feel so far away - and now even further with Lewis moving to rival Ferrari.

Lewis proved why he’s one of the best by willing his way to P3 Drivers’ finish, impressive considering the challenges the car presented all year. He scored points every single weekend and managed 6 podiums, constantly squeezing as much out of the car as possible. The machine was the definition of inconsistency, and it was hard to know any given weekend if they would fight towards the front or move backwards through the field. This inconsistency was unfortunately embodied by teammate Russell. P8 was a down year George, who only managed 2 podiums after 8 the year before. However his great drive to seal P2 against the aforementioned Ferrari in Abu Dhabi was a highlight, and can hopefully for him provide confidence as he’s set up to become Mercedes’ #1.

Interesting dynamic to start the year with some lame duck drivers at top teams, though there’s no question in my mind these guys will give it their all no matter the contract situation. George has to seize this opportunity to be #1 at Merc, and we’ll see if they can get him the car. But does Lewis already know something about the car that we don’t, indicated by his move? Time will tell..

• Highs: George seals P2 in Constructors’ in Abu Dhabi, Lewis consistency despite a poor car

• Lows: Austin DQ, Russell struggles

• “In life, the evolution is so fast that it can surprise you. I have now learned that you should never say ‘never’ in life” - HAM foreshadowing much?

• “It’s been a very, very strange season. It’s been a season where we’ve had a lot of pace at times, but never achieved the results that I felt were deserved or were possible” - RUS

Down the Grid

Tech Talk

• All the terms you need to know to talk like an F1 driver [Video]

• 8 rule changes you need to know for 2024. Includes tighter power unit rules, stricter halo requirements, and an increase in CapEx limits (finance rules.. so exciting)

• Quick! Does it happen to be exactly 2pm? If it does, give a quick google search and see if you can find Haas’s new car. While some teams do a live event, Haas has been more lowkey by releasing car details online. Notice how the release dates are pretty close to reverse finishing order? Smaller teams try to release earlier in order to not get overshadowed out by the big names. All launch dates are now confirmed, we’ll cover the first half next week🔽 

Off the Grid

• How have drivers been spending their winter break? Lemme guess - Max sim racing.. Bottas on the bike.. Oscar doing something wholesome. But seriously a bit more extreme sport participation going on than I anticipated. Max revealed it’s written into his contract that he’s not allowed to hit the slopes (which is pretty common for highly paid athletes).

• F1 owner Liberty Media tops Forbes’ list of Most Valuable Sports Empires at over $18B (although their total $ value has shrunk after spinning off the Atlanta Braves last July.) Following in the #2 spot is Kroenke Sports and Entertainment (LA Rams, Denver Nuggets, Arsenal FC) with Fenway Sports and Entertainment (Boston Redsox, Pittsburgh Penguins, Liverpool FC) rounding out the top 3.

• Malaysia is looking to return to F1 in 2026

• Pierre Gasly has an interesting collection in his garage. Looks like Charles, Lando, Lewis, and Max, along with two minecraft characters. How’s that for a callback to last week.

Wow. The spice just keeps on coming. It feels like the lights are already out and away we’ve gone.

Questions? Comments? Did we get something wrong (never 😁)? Let us know ▶ [email protected]