In a move few saw coming, Riccardo Corte, Lewis Hamilton’s former performance engineer, has left Ferrari to take up a role with Grove Racing in the Australian V8 Supercars series. Fans quickly reacted to the news on social media, and most of them were not happy.
There had been calls to drop Riccardo from the team. Fans, however, pointed out that Ferrari has lost the “wrong Riccardo”.
Which Riccardo Are Lewis Hamilton Fans Really Talking About?
For 11 years, Corte was a fixture at Ferrari, starting as Charles Leclerc’s driver coach before stepping up as Carlos Sainz’s performance engineer. When Hamilton arrived from Mercedes, it was Corte who helped the 40-year-old adjust to life at Ferrari.
Corte was moved back to a development role after the Belgian Grand Prix. Now, he’s left Ferrari entirely, taking the unexpected step of joining the Supercars series as race engineer for newcomer Kai Allen next year.
“I’m really proud to be joining Grove Racing at such an exciting time for the team,” Corte said after the move became official.
“The progress they’ve made in recent seasons is impressive, and the Bathurst 1000 win shows what’s possible with the right people and mindset.”
“After 11 years at Ferrari F1, I’m looking forward to bringing that experience into Supercars, helping the team keep pushing forward and maximising every opportunity on track,” he added.
Fans on social media suggested that Ferrari should have fired Riccardo Adami, Hamilton’s race engineer, instead of letting Riccardo Corte go.
“i seee! anyways it’s unfortunately the wrong riccardo ” one fan reacted to the news.
“Everyone leaving except Adami🥲” another fan wrote.
“Not me getting excited because I thought Riccardo Adami was the one who would leave 😭” – similar comments continued to come.
One user demanded the removal of Adami from the team next, saying: “Adami next pls”.
“I first thought it was Riccardo Adami before reading 😭🤣” another commented.
It’s been clear throughout the season that Hamilton hasn’t clicked with race engineer Adami, something fans and pundits alike have pointed out.
Hamilton’s annoyance at Adami came through when the team discussed switching positions with Charles Leclerc. The seven-time World Champion even muttered sarcastically, “Have a tea break while you’re at it.”
The dynamic between Hamilton and Adami drew further attention in Monaco, where, during the latter stages, he asked over the radio, “Are you upset with me or something?” — and the silence that followed spoke volumes.
Hamilton has denied any tension between him and Adami, though. However, it remains clear that he doesn’t have the same connection with his current race engineer as he did with Peter ‘Bono’ Bonnington at Mercedes.