F1 News
Ferrari convinced: 'We have the strongest lineup on the grid'
Ferrari has not yet made a decision on which rookies will be used during free practice sessions in the 2025 Formula 1 season. It remains uncertain whether the team will select someone from the Ferrari Driver Academy. This was confirmed by Jerome d'Ambrosio, head of Ferrari’s junior programme and right-hand man to team principal Fred Vasseur.
Ferrari has not yet decided on its rookies
The Scuderia has not yet confirmed which rookies will get a chance during a free practice session in a Grand Prix weekend this year. Dino Beganovic, who will drive his first full Formula 2 season with Hitech this year, could be a possible option for Ferrari. Still, nothing has been decided yet, and the team is not naming anyone for now.
GPblog asked which drivers will be given a chance by the Ferrari Driver Academy. D'Ambrosio said: "Obviously, at the moment, we haven't decided what's going to happen with the FP1. That won't be decided throughout the season. So can't name any driver, can't even say if it's going to be someone from the Academy or not. This will very much depend on performance, on opportunities, on when the team will decide to opt for the FP1. Obviously, we've got four [FP1s] now this year, so more opportunities for young drivers, but we'll just have to see how things play out."
When GPblog also asked what Ferrari youngsters can learn from Lewis Hamilton, former F1 driver D'Ambrosio stressed that Charles Leclerc is also a role model for the young drivers. "I think it's important that they've got two role models to look up to, Charles and Lewis. They're two different drivers with very much different experience and [in a] different stage of their career as well," the 39-year-old Belgian explained.
D'Ambrosio certain: 'We have the strongest lineup on the grid'
"But we've got, probably, or at least I believe so, the strongest lineup on the grid," D'Ambrosio continued. "And that's great for young drivers to be able to be in an environment like that and listen to these guys when they've got the opportunity, whether it's in debriefs or whatever.
"But it's a good environment for them to be in and to look up to these guys, but at the same time, just to focus on themselves and still make sure they focus on. I think it's really important for any academy to make sure that the drivers that are in F2 and in F3 focus on what they're doing at that level. It's the same with FRECA or even karting because it's a step at a time. But definitely, I think they can be inspired by both [of our] drivers, and it's something that I'm sure they're looking at." Concludes D'Ambrosio.
This article was written in collaboration with Toby Nixon
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