"Everybody is excited" about Hamilton's arrival, claims Vasseur

F1 Grand Prix, GP United States, Circuit of The Americas

In the face of Lewis Hamilton's arrival at Ferrari, the Scuderia's team boss Fred Vasseur reckons that everyone "all over the world" is excited about the seven-time world champion.

Lewis Hamilton announced his shock departure from Mercedes on the 1st of February. The announcement caught the Formula One community by surprise, as the seven-time world champion was set to race for the Brackley-based outfit until the end of 2025.

However, an exit clause in his contract allowed Hamilton to leave the team in 2025 if he wished, and the Briton elected to terminate his contract at the end of the current season and seek for a new challenge at Ferrari next year.

Hamilton is statistically the most successful driver in the history of Formula One, tied with the great German seven-time world champion Michael Schumacher on the number of world championship titles.

The 1st of January marked the start of Hamilton's official arrival at Scuderia, with his contract with Ferrari set to run until December 31. Ferrari team boss Fred Vasseur reckons that everyone "all over the world" is excited about the arrival of the seven-time world champion.

“Everybody all over the world is excited, and for sure, the mechanics are also excited, but because it’s always exciting to have someone who is a seven-time world champion in the car.

“But I think after day one, we’ll have to turn the page and focus on the job,” Vasseur told Sky F1.

Although Hamilton was not able to take part in the post-season Pirelli tyre testing with Ferrari, the seven-time F1 champion is expected to make his on-track debut with the Scuderia in a two-year-old Ferrari at the end of January.

Speaking of Hamilton's potential first on-track day with the Scuderia, Vasseur said: "We will have the occasion to do a TPC or Pirelli test day. But it's closely linked to the weather, and we didn't take a decision [on a date or venue].

"It's always a challenge, starting from the beginning of January until the launch of the season. It means that for sure it's critical that you have only six weeks [before pre-season testing], it's not easy. But I think he's also coming with his own experience. He's not the rookie of the year. It means that I'm not worried at all about this.

"It's also the continuity of the previous [technical] regulations [from 2024] and so that means for us, we have some reference. I'm not worried, but it's true that it's a challenge."