In a surprising turn of events, Mercedes has announced the promotion of Peter Bonnington, Lewis Hamilton's race engineer, to the position of head of race engineering with immediate effect. This promotion effectively rules out any possibility of Bonnington joining Hamilton at Ferrari next season.

Bonnington and Hamilton have formed an exceptional partnership since the British driver's move to Mercedes in 2013. Together, they have achieved unprecedented success, winning six drivers' championships and establishing Hamilton as the most successful driver in Formula 1 history.

Speculation had been rife about whether Bonnington would follow Hamilton to Ferrari once the seven-time world champion's transfer was confirmed. However, neither Bonnington nor Hamilton hinted at a continuation of their partnership in Maranello.

With this latest announcement, Mercedes has put an end to any doubts regarding Bonnington's future. The promotion will see him take on the crucial role of head of race engineering, while also continuing to serve as the race engineer for one of the team's two race drivers in 2025.

This setup mirrors the structure seen at Red Bull, where Max Verstappen's race engineer, Gianpiero Lambiase, also holds the responsibility of being head of race engineering for the team. This demonstrates the growing importance of this position within Formula 1 teams.

As Bonnington's promotion has been confirmed, it means he will be remaining with Mercedes next year, while Hamilton will be working with a new race engineer at Ferrari. Currently, Ferrari's Carlos Sainz is engineered by Riccardo Adami.

Mercedes, however, is yet to announce who will be replacing Hamilton and partnering with George Russell in 2025. Rumors suggest that Italian youngster Andrea Kimi Antonelli is being seriously considered for the role. Antonelli, who turns 18 on Sunday, has made appearances in F1 testing and has been making waves in the Formula 2 season, impressing many with his skills.

There is even speculation that Antonelli could make a Friday practice appearance for Mercedes before the end of this season, as the team still needs to slot in a rookie for two FP1 sessions.

The upcoming changes in the Mercedes and Ferrari teams have ignited excitement and anticipation within the F1 community, as fans eagerly await to see how these reshuffles will impact the highly competitive landscape of Formula 1.