Ferrari opts against appointing a temporary race engineer for Hamilton

11:16, 20 Feb

Updated: 13:18, 20 Feb

byNicole Mulder

Carlo Santi is currently Lewis Hamilton’s race engineer and not just a temporary solution, GPblog has learned.

After the departure of Riccardo Adami, the impression was that Ferrari had only found an interim solution for winter testing. Adami, who still assisted Hamilton from the pit wall in 2025, has since moved into a role within the Ferrari Driver Academy.

This brought an early end to the collaboration between the Brit and the Italian in early 2026. Santi—who until then had supported the full-time engineers of Hamilton and Charles Leclerc on the pit wall—then took over the role, both during the shakedown in Barcelona and throughout both test weeks in Bahrain.

Santi more than a temporary race engineer for Hamilton

In the Formula 1 paddock, it was quickly assumed that Santi would only step in temporarily until a permanent replacement was appointed. However, GPblog understands that the situation is more nuanced, and that this is more than a temporary appointment. Santi is Hamilton’s current race engineer and will remain so during the first Grand Prix weekend of the year in Melbourne, and likely for the first few races thereafter.

Carlo Santi, Lewis Hamilton’s current race engineer - Photo: Racepictures

It is not yet set in stone that Santi will stay on for the rest of the season, but for now, he seems to have good chemistry with Hamilton. Their collaboration will be further evaluated after the first few races of the new F1 season. If Hamilton and Santi prove to be a good match, Ferrari sees no reason to switch race engineers again.

During the first test week in Bahrain, Hamilton voiced criticism about the prospect of getting yet another new race engineer after the first few races of the season. He may therefore not need to worry about that: if the collaboration with Santi also goes well during race weekends, there is a significant chance he will remain Hamilton’s permanent race engineer.

Various names linked to Hamilton

In the run-up to the new season, several names were mentioned as potential permanent successors to Adami. Among them was Cedric Michel-Grosjean, who previously worked at McLaren. An official confirmation of a new permanent race engineer, however, never came. That makes the situation clear: for now, Santi is the man alongside Hamilton. Whether that remains the case for the entire 2026 season depends on Ferrari’s evaluation over the coming races.

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