Rumor had it that Lewis Hamilton could be able to bring dependable Mercedes allies, like veteran race engineer Peter “Bono” Bonnington, to Ferrari.
Mirror Sport can confirm that Lewis Hamilton is not permitted to invite important Mercedes allies to join him at Ferrari.
After an 11-year tenure with the Silver Arrows, the seven-time world champion will depart for Ferrari at the end of the current season. Furthermore, there were rumors that he might bring along a few of his closest allies.
However, it is recognized that Hamilton is prohibited from doing so by a provision in the contract he signed last year. This implies that he won’t be able to travel to Maranello with his closest friends and confidants, like race engineer Peter Bonnington.
Known by his nickname, “Bono,” Bonnington has been Hamilton’s primary race engineer since he joined Mercedes prior to the 2013 season. Prior to that, he played the same part for Michael Schumacher, a seven-time champion.
Following Hamilton’s announcement that he would be departing for Ferrari at the end of the year, there were some reports speculating that ‘Bono’ and other drivers might accompany him to Italy. However, Hamilton’s contract has a “no-poaching” clause that keeps him from asking his reliable ally to take that action.
Even though Bonnington and Hamilton have a relationship, it seems like he was just as shocked to hear that Hamilton is leaving as everyone else. Regarding the race engineer’s future, team principal Toto Wolff made as many suggestions as he was questioned about.
“I think this is a conversation that everyone needs to have in the upcoming months,” he stated. Even though I’ve spoken with Bono before, he asked, “Is April the first?” when I told him. We will talk more about that in the future.”
Regarding Hamilton’s replacement, Wolff says he won’t make a snap decision. Whatever the situation, the Austrian is sure George Russell can lead the team into the future after Hamilton departs.
“George has the potential to be the team’s lead driver going forward,” he stated. He is in the same generation as Lando [Norris], Charles [Leclerc], and a few others. Without a doubt, I couldn’t ask for a [better] replacement team captain when Lewis departs.
“We just need to decide on the best option for the second seat because we have such a strong foundation and a quick and intelligent guy in the car. I don’t want to jump right into that.”
