Pete Bonnington decides F1 future as rumoured Mercedes driver plans emerge – round-up

Wednesday’s F1 news features a new job for Lewis Hamilton’s race engineer Pete Bonnington and an update on Mercedes’ pursuit of Red Bull star Max Verstappen with huge ramifications for F1 2025 and 2026.

Let’s rush through the day’s main headlines at breakneck speed…

F1 news: Peter Bonnington new role as Mercedes concede defeat on Max Verstappen

Lewis Hamilton engineer Pete Bonnington promoted by Mercedes

Lewis Hamilton’s long-serving race engineer Pete Bonnington has been promoted to the role of head of race engineering at Mercedes.

Although Bonnington is to be promoted with immediate effect, he will continue to work with Hamilton across the remainder of the F1 2024 season ahead of the seven-time World Champion’s move to Ferrari.

PlanetF1.com revealed earlier this year that a so-called “no-poaching” clause in Hamilton’s Mercedes contract prevents the driver from playing an active role in persuading staff to follow him to Ferrari for F1 2025.

Read more: New race engineer for Lewis Hamilton at Ferrari as Pete Bonnington promoted by Mercedes

Mercedes reportedly give up on Max Verstappen for F1 2025

Mercedes have conceded defeat in their bid to sign Max Verstappen for the F1 2025 season, it has been claimed, but are likely to try again ahead of F1 2026.

Verstappen has been regarded as the dream option for Mercedes to replace Ferrari-bound Lewis Hamilton, but reports earlier this month claimed the team are set to sign teenage sensation Andrea Kimi Antonelli as George Russell’s new team-mate.

Read more: Update on Mercedes driver plans for 2025 and 2026 after ‘not an option’ claim – report

Jacques Villeneuve makes Lewis Hamilton vs Max Verstappen comparison

Jacques Villeneuve, the 1997 World Champion, believes Lewis Hamilton is “very emotional in his driving” and has “never had a season” like Max Verstappen.

Verstappen has become the dominant force of F1, winning 51 of the last 80 races stretching back to the start of his maiden title-winning season in 2021.

Villeneuve feels Hamilton has more “ups and downs” than Verstappen, suggesting that self-doubt could trigger “swings in his moods.”

Read more: Lewis Hamilton ‘has never had a season like Max Verstappen’ in ‘mood swing’ verdict

FIA clarifies braking system stance

The FIA has clarified that no team on the F1 2024 grid has been using a banned braking system.

The FIA World Motor Sport Council ratified changes to the technical regulations over the summer break, including additional text to explicitly outlaw asymmetrical braking torques, which led to online speculation about whether Red Bull had been running such a system on their car prior to the Miami Grand Prix.

An FIA representative has clarified that there is “no truth that any team was using such a system” prior to the trick being outlawed.

Read more: FIA set record straight on Red Bull brake rumours after new ‘forbidden’ rule

Adrian Newey reveals ‘curiosity’ behind F1 grid inspections

Outgoing Red Bull designer Adrian Newey has revealed “curiosity” is behind his habit of examining the cars of rival teams on the F1 grid.

Newey, who is thought to be close to a move to Aston Martin from F1 2025, acknowledged that he is “well known” for examining other cars on the starting grid.

The F1 tech guru revealed that he is merely trying to “understand other people’s thought processes” rather than directly copying the ideas of rival teams.

Read more: Revealed: What Adrian Newey is looking at on rival cars in F1 grid investigation