Ferrari has confirmed that ex-Sauber Motorsport boss Frederic Vasseur will replace Matti Binotto as Formula 1 Team Principal of the Scuderia.
It was today announced that Vasseur would leave his post at Sauber, a role he’d held since 2017.
The Frenchman was a front-runner for the Ferrari Team Principal role as pressure mounted on Binotto in the latter stages of the 2022 championship.
“I am truly delighted and honoured to take over the leadership of Scuderia Ferrari as Team Principal,” Vasseur said.
“As someone who has always held a lifelong passion for motorsport, Ferrari has always represented the very pinnacle of the racing world to me.
“I look forward to working with the talented and truly passionate team in Maranello to honour the history and heritage of the Scuderia and deliver for our Tifosi around the world.”
Ferrari CEO, Benedetto Vigna, added: “We are delighted to welcome Fred Vasseur to Ferrari as our Team Principal.
“Throughout his career he has successfully combined his technical strengths as a trained engineer with a consistent ability to bring out the best in his drivers and teams.
“This approach and his leadership are what we need to push Ferrari forward with renewed energy.”
Vasseur has a long relationship with Ferrari, beyond his team being a power unit customer of the Italian operation.
He has a relationship with Nicholas Todt, together founding the ART Grand Prix team, which campaigns in junior formulae including Formula 2 and Formula 3.
Todt, the son of ex-Ferrari team boss Jean, is the manager of Charles Leclerc while the Monegasque driver made his F1 debut with Sauber – headed by Vasseur.
Ferrari finished second in the 2022 constructors’ championship, a competition it headed in the early stages of the year.
It was a significant turnaround from 2021, and before that 2020, seasons in which the Prancing Horse went winless.
Despite the upturn in performance, Binotto faced intense scrutiny from the media over his position.
That led to a public statement of support for the Italian, though he ultimately elected to walk away from the team.
Vasseur now steps into that role and an organisation where the expectation is that nothing but the championship is good enough.
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