Lewis Hamilton’s next race engineer could be Cedric-Michel Grosjean after reports emerged that Ferrari are looking to poach an employee from McLaren to replace Riccardo Adami. The seven-time world champion spent just one season with the Italian before the partnership was split up.

Adami and Hamilton struggled with their communication throughout the Brit’s first season with Ferrari, and even after 24 races together, there were moments of tension during the finale in Abu Dhabi. After Fred Vasseur teased a change in his post-season interviews, the switch was confirmed earlier this month.

Adami has been moved into a role at the helm of Ferrari’s driver development programme, where he will look after the stars of the future, including reigning Formula Three champion Rafael Camara. Hamilton, meanwhile, faces a wait to discover the identity of the next voice in his ear.

According to a report from Italian news outlet Corriere dello Sport, Ferrari are looking to attract a successor from McLaren. In the meantime, Bryan Bozzi, who typically serves as Charles Leclerc’s race engineer after taking over from Xavier Marcos Padros, will work on both cars for the behind-closed-doors pre-season test in Barcelona.

Grosjean is thought to be the individual in question, having departed McLaren at the end of the 2025 season after working closely with Oscar Piastri in the Australian’s team as trackside performance engineer. The Frenchman even liked a LinkedIn post containing quotes from Vasseur about Ferrari’s 2026 challenger.

Despite the uncertainty surrounding his inner circle for the 2026 season and the challenges of last year, Hamilton is in high spirits heading into the new technical regulations. For both Ferrari and the 41-year-old, this will likely be a make-or-break campaign.

“Well, I mean, last year was the first time sitting in a red car, and that was so unique as a first, and that will always be the first,” Hamilton said after piloting in the SF26 at Ferrari’s launch event in Fiorano.

“But I mean, in this one, obviously the cockpit is quite white because we’ve got the livery — it’s great. The good thing is, when you come back, you always hope you fit. Fortunately, I fit completely fine.

“I don’t know, it’s just so exciting when they fire the car up and you get the new vibration of the car through your body. Then they open up the door, and you end up going down to Turn One, where you can literally see the Tifosi when they open the door. That’s something I will never get used to, and something I’ll never be able to forget.”