F1 Rumour: Ferrari Fears Losing More Staff To AlphaTauri After Deputy Team Principal Exit
Ferrari reportedly fears that former deputy team principal Laurent Mekies, who made the switch to AlphaTauri last year as team principal, could be pushing more team members to shift from the Maranello outfit to Red Bull's junior team.
After the Hungarian Grand Prix last year, Mekies resigned from Ferrari and took over as the new team boss of AlphaTauri, succeeding Franz Tost. Starting his new role in 2024, concerns within the Red team, led by Fred Vasseur, arise over the possibility that Mekies may have already started attracting talent away from Ferrari.
The primary worry revolves around the critical information that Mekies possesses regarding Ferrari and the contact details of its team members- data that could potentially be leveraged by his new employer for its benefit. It is like gaining access to a database of potential staff with experience who wouldn't mind making the switch to another Italian team.
Like in the case of the head of the Ferrari Driver Academy, Marco Matassa, who as per the Italian publication Corriere dello Sport, made the switch to AlphaTauri after being persuaded by Mekies.
The appointment of Matassa, whose duties will be temporarily taken over by Jock Clear, has been deemed especially concerning for Ferrari due to Mekies' in-depth familiarity with the team and its personnel.
Ferrari could be on high alert right now, fearing the exit of more staff after being persuaded by Mekies. Matassa's exit news coincides with Vasseur anticipating the arrival of approximately 80 new individuals to join the team, with about half intended to fill the positions of those departing.
Loic Serra, the performance director from Mercedes, is among the new arrivals and is subject to the gardening leave policy in Formula 1 contracts. This policy, which Vasseur voiced his frustration about last year, prevents him from joining Ferrari until the end of 2024, hindering the immediate utilization of newly hired talent.
