Fred Vasseur Hits Back at Mattia Binotto Over ‘I Wouldn’t Have Taken Lewis Hamilton’ Comment

Lewis Hamilton and Ferrari’s alliance indeed sounds like a dream team. However, many, including Ferrari’s former team principal Mattia Binotto, have pointed out that Hamilton’s age could hinder his success at Maranello.

“It is a meeting between myth and legend. However, I, speaking instead of motorsport and that’s it, wouldn’t have taken someone like Hamilton,” said Binotto in February this year. Several months later, when new team boss Frederic Vasseur got to comment on his predecessor’s comments, the Frenchman said Binotto shouldn’t focus on Ferrari while being at Sauber.

“I’m not sure that Hamilton would have gone to Sauber (laughs). I’m happy that many have time to comment on our choices. I’m focused on our work, after all when I was at Sauber I didn’t talk about Ferrari,” said Vasseur.

Audi has taken over Sauber’s operations at F1, and to bolster the operations, Binotto has been appointed as the CEO of the team. Audi’s aspirations are ambitious and they aim to reach the pinnacle of the sport in no time.

But 2024 has been a year for Sauber to forget. However, Binotto does bring enough expertise in the sport that can make the Audi-backed operation a success story in some time.

What does Binotto bring to the table?

Binotto has served Ferrari throughout his career in F1. Only once he got sacked when the Maranello-based team was under his reigns, did he leave the factory. While the latter years of Binotto haven’t been something to boast about, he had played an instrumental role in the Italian team’s heydays.

During the Michael Schumacher era, Binotto was among the top executives and was a part of the engine department. In 2007, when Kimi Raikkonen won the title, Binotto was the chief engineer at Ferrari.

Even as a technical director, he has had impressive achievements. Therefore, with so much experience at the top, he certainly is a value addition for Audi, who are yet to run their name in F1.

About the author

Tanish Chachra

Tanish Chachra is the Motorsport editor at The SportsRush. He saw his first race when F1 visited India in 2011, and since then, his romance with the sport has been seasonal until he took up this role in 2020. Reigniting F1's coverage on this site, Tanish has fallen in love with the sport all over again. He loves Kimi Raikkonen and sees a future world champion in Oscar Piastri. Away from us, he loves to snuggle inside his books.

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