Ferrari make Hamilton vow to avoid Mercedes 'copy-paste'

Fred Vasseur has vowed Ferrari will find a way to manage Lewis Hamilton once he starts life with Ferrari, and there will be "no copy-paste" of what occurred at Mercedes.

Hamilton spent 26 years under Mercedes' wing, initially through the McLaren driver development programme, before joining the F1 team in 2007 and becoming a works driver in 2013.

At the start of the year, the 39-year-old announced he would split from Mercedes after the upcoming season, bringing the curtain down on a stellar part of his career that yielded six of his seven drivers' titles.

It was the late Niki Lauda who enticed Hamilton to join Mercedes. He developed a close bond with the three-time champion, as well as with team principal Toto Wolff.

Whilst there is no Lauda-type figure inside Ferrari, Hamilton at least has a good friendship with Vasseur. It was the Frenchman who enticed Hamilton to sever his ties with Mercedes and work on the final chapter of his storied career with Ferrari.

Vasseur, however, has vowed to do things differently with Hamilton, compared to his time with Mercedes.

"I'm not sure that we have to do a copy-paste of what he did with Mercedes," said Vasseur, speaking to select media, including RacingNews365, at a Ferrari event in Maranello. "The environment worked very well at the beginning, a bit less at the end.

"We have to find the best way to manage Lewis. I know him pretty well, but I don't want to do at all a copy-paste of what he did in the past."

Hamilton 'not rookie of the year'

Now that Hamilton has officially left Mercedes, the question is when will be his first day in red, and how quickly will Ferrari be able to get him up to speed and integrated into the team's ways of working.

An official launch at the O2 Arena in London, when all 10 teams will be present at a spectacular showcase event, takes place on February 18.

Vasseur has confirmed, weather permitting, that Hamilton will be on track at Fiorano the following day. As to any running before then, likely in a TPC car, is unplanned.

"It's always a challenge because starting from the beginning of January until the launch of the season on the 18th of February in London - and we will do a launch on the 19th in Maranello - means for sure, it's critical, that you have only six weeks," said Vasseur. "It's not easy.

"But he comes with his own experience. He is not the rookie of the year, so I'm not worried at all about this, and also the continuity of the previous regulation, which means means for us, we have some reference.

"The challenge is, if you imagine that we go to Bahrain and we have a sandstorm as we had a couple of years ago, then it's tough, but it's tough for everybody on the grid. We know we have only three days there. It is like it is.

"I know that we will have an occasion to do a TPC or a Pirelli test day, but it's closely linked to the weather, and so we haven't taken a decision."