Ferrari have confirmed the arrivals of two key Mercedes staff members in a huge boost to Lewis Hamilton's hopes of glory next year.
Engineer Loic Serra and executive Jerome d'Ambrosio will be leaving the Silver Arrows for Ferrari later this year.
Serra, who is currently performance director at Mercedes, will take on the new role of 'Head of Chassis Performance Engineering' at his new side.
And former driver D'Ambrosio, who raced 20 times during his own F1 career, will join as deputy team principal.
Lewis Hamilton is currently preparing for this weekend's Emilia Romagna Grand Prix
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He had previously been working as Toto Wolff's lieutenant at Mercedes.
But he will now work alongside Ferrari chief Fred Vasseur instead, while he's also work alongside the head of the Ferrari Driver Academy.
A Ferrari statement read: “Scuderia Ferrari HP is pleased to announce it is further strengthening the team with the arrival of Loic Serra and Jerome d’Ambrosio, both coming from the Mercedes AMG F1 team.
“Loic Serra and Jerome d’Ambrosio will both start working with Scuderia Ferrari HP on 1st October.”
Hamilton has endured a difficult time of things in recent years.
He is yet to win a race since 2021 and, with Mercedes struggling, has opted to leave for Ferrari at the end of the season.
And the Maranello-based outfit appear to be doing all they can to boost Hamilton's chances of reigning supreme once more ahead of his transfer.
The arrival of two people he already knows will likely boost his chances of winning a record eighth F1 title.
Hamilton had thought he'd won the crown once more in 2021 after the final race of the season in Abu Dhabi.
However, an incident involving a safety car saw Max Verstappen become champion instead.
Hamilton is currently ninth in the F1 table, having amassed just 27 points so far.
The Stevenage-born racer recently said he's 'had enough' of Mercedes' misery, saying: "It's been tough.
"Of course we exist to win and when you’re not winning, your perspective has to shift," he said.
"And it’s just been about chasing and it’s about improvement. It’s about coming together.
"How can we make improvements? How can we get back to where we want to be and rallying and everyone out?
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Lewis Hamilton will be joined by Jerome D'Ambrosio at Ferrari next year
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"I actually really enjoyed that experience. But three years in now, we’re like, okay, I’ve had enough of this, let’s get back to where we belong."
Mercedes chief Toto Wolff has since responded, with the Austrian admitting an immediate improvement is unlikely.
"I think we understand much more what is needed to get the car in a better place because it’s so clear now what it does and why we struggle and where we struggle," he said.
"In Formula 1 you can accelerate development and produce the beats and we’re flat out.
"The design office is all in, the production operations are flat out.
Lewis Hamilton will be hoping to win the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix after a difficult start to the current F1 season
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"The rest has been doing a good job. All of the factories are really sixth gear in order to bring stuff to the car that we believe can be very helpful.
"In terms of what they’re bringing to the car, you can’t really rush it because you’ve got to get to the point where you say now it’s good to be released into production.
"And once that part comes, or once it’s come, they need to be sorted. So this is a matter of many weeks."
