Mercedes Junior Driver Believes ‘Idol’ Lewis Hamilton’s Move to Ferrari Is “Big for History”

It has been a month and a half since Lewis Hamilton officially started working with Ferrari and the hype surrounding the same has still not decreased. Almost everyone in the sport has shared what they think of this blockbuster move and the latest to do so is Mercedes junior driver Doriane Pin, who won the F1 Academy title last year.

Hamilton has already stated he feels “rejuvenated” after moving to Ferrari, a team he always dreamed of driving for. Even Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff — who had to swallow the bitter bill of Hamilton’s departure to Maranello — has come to terms with the 40-year-old’s decision and is keen to root for him in Ferrari red.

Heading into the 2025 season, though, there could be a tussle between Ferrari and Mercedes at the front of the field. From the first impressions in pre-season testing, the Silver Arrows have seemed to take a step up in performance, which could help them match Ferrari. If so, Hamilton will have to fend off his beloved former team to get back to winning ways.

However, that won’t belittle the magnitude of the seven-time world champion racing in red for Wolff and Co., and especially for someone like Doriane Pin, who has not only watched him from close quarters at Mercedes, but also followed his career since her childhood days.

“He’s my idol since I was very young, so I think [Hamilton driving for Ferrari] it’s a big thing for F1 and for the history,” she told TalkSport during the F1 75 event after expressing a shocked reaction on being asked such a question.

Pin concluded her remarks by explaining how she is happy for Hamilton, who she believes has worked very hard to achieve his childhood dream of driving for Ferrari.

Hamilton’s first Ferrari pictures break F1 social media records

With 105 wins and seven championships to his name, Hamilton has achieved almost everything there is to accomplish in the sport. Yet, he described his move to Ferrari as a dream, explaining how big of a privilege it is for any driver to race for the iconic Italian brand.

And Ferrari, knowing the kind of driver they had signed, did everything to make the 40-year-old’s first few days at Maranello memorable. The Briton got to pose outside Enzo’s house and beside a Ferrari F40, a picture that received an F1 social media record of 5.7 million likes on Instagram.

The excitement about Hamilton’s move to Ferrari continued even for the next few days as thousands gathered at Fiorano — the team’s private test track — to watch the 40-year-old drive a red car for the first time in his career.

Hamilton first drove Ferrari’s 2023 car, the SF-23 as part of the Testing for Previous Cars (TPC) program before driving the SF-24 a couple of weeks later during Pirelli’s test. Both these tests Hamilton revealed were integral for him to get acclimatized with Ferrari’s cars and better prepare him to get the most out of his pre-season testing in Bahrain last week.

With testing now out of the way, all eyes will be on the season opener in Australia from March 14 to 16. Although Hamilton is expected to have a slow start to the season, the Tifosi are unlikely to care and will continue to cheer him on as they have done in the past month and a half.