Lewis Hamilton will have a new engineer when the season resumes: here’s who it will be
Ferrari are set to shake up their pitwall operations. From the Miami Grand Prix onwards, Cédric Michel-Grosjean will officially take on the role of race engineer for Lewis Hamilton, bringing to a close a transitional period that began following the departure of Riccardo Adami at the end of last season.
For the opening three races of the campaign, the responsibility had been handed temporarily to Carlo Santi – a stopgap solution designed to maintain stability while the team finalised its new structure.
Michel-Grosjean was already inside the Ferrari environment: the details
Michel-Grosjean was already operating within the Ferrari setup during this time, serving out his gardening leave from McLaren while immersing himself in the team’s internal processes.
Much of his focus has been directed at building an effective working relationship with Hamilton – no minor detail in Formula 1, where the dynamic between driver and race engineer can be just as influential as the technical data exchanged over the radio. Knowing what to say, and when to say it, is a craft in itself.
The cancellation of the Middle Eastern rounds extended the preparation window, giving Michel-Grosjean additional time to work alongside Hamilton at the factory and align on methods before heading back to the track — an unexpected delay that ultimately worked in the partnership’s favour.
Miami now marks the official beginning of their collaboration, arriving at a moment when Ferrari are also expecting a significant technical update. The hope within Maranello is straightforward: that a refreshed car and a new voice in Hamilton’s ear can begin working in unison from the very first lap.
Photo: Scuderia Ferrari HP
