Frédéric Vasseur will replace Mattia Binotto as Ferrari team principal in 2023, the Italian team has confirmed today.
Vasseur will leave his position at the helm of Alfa Romeo at the end of the month to take up the most famous job in world motorsport.
He will reportedly to be replaced by current McLaren team principal Andreas Seidl. Sauber will become the Audi works entry in 2026.
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Seidl’s departure would mean three team principals will have left their posts in less than 24 hours after Williams confirmed it will part ways with Jost Capito.
Binotto started the unprecedented off-season of upheaval around two weeks ago with his resignation from Ferrari.
Vasseur has long been rumoured as the successor to the Ferrari top job, with only Mattia Binotto’s sudden decision to resign preventing the smooth handover planned by the team’s executive.
The Frenchman said he was “truly delighted and honoured” to take his place on the list of Ferrari managers.
“As someone who has always held a lifelong passion for motorsport, Ferrari has always represented the very pinnacle of the racing world to me,” he said. “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 said he hoped Vasseur’s approach to leadership would “push Ferrari forward with renewed energy”.
Vasseur joined Sauber at one of its lowest ebbs in 2017, when it would finish 10th in the championship with barely a handful of points for the second season in a row.
One of his first decisions was to tear up a contract with Honda for the following year and strengthen ties with Ferrari, which led to Alfa Romeo title sponsorship from 2019 onwards.
That also ensured the team had the chance to debut Charles Leclerc in 2018 and Ferrari junior Antonio Giovinazzi alongside Ferrari champion Kimi Raikkonen in 2019. He also masterminded Valtteri Bottas joining the team this season.
But his crowning achievement was securing a sale of the team to Audi, with the German auto giant set to make Sauber its works entry from 2026, not only locking in the team’s financial future but also almost certainly moving it much nearer to the front of the grid.
That in turn has made the team a significantly more attractive workplace, and confirmation Vasseur’s departure from Hinwil is expected to precede confirmation that Seidl will make the shock move away from McLaren to take up the Frenchman’s vacated position at the future Audi team.
Several outlets have reported that Seidl has informed McLaren of his intention to leave the team he joined less than four years ago.
Seidl’s impending move to Sauber will return him to the Volkswagen fold once Audi takes the reins, having held the role of team principal in Porsche’s successful World Endurance Championship entry prior to joining Woking.
