Ferrari dropped a bombshell on the motorsport world earlier this month when it announced that it had signed seven-time F1 champion Hamilton for 2025.
It will bring to an end a fruitful 11-year partnership with the Mercedes F1 team, whom Hamilton joined from McLaren at the end of 2012 and won six of his seven world titles between 2014 and 2020.
Quartararo is a known F1 fan and lover of cars, and prior to MotoGP pre-season testing kicking off he took a trip to Ferrari’s Maranello base at the end of January.
The 2021 MotoGP champion was shown around by Piero Ferrari, son of the marque’s founder Enzo.
In an interview with Autosport, Quartararo revealed that Ferrari insinuated to him that Hamilton would be joining its F1 team – but he didn’t realise it until after the announcement.
“It was strange, because I was visiting Maranello a couple of days before the announcement and Piero Ferrari suggested it to me,” Quartararo said.
“But at that moment I didn’t know how to interpret it, I didn’t get it. I didn’t fall for it until it became official.”
Source: Autosport