Lewis Hamilton will leave Mercedes at the end of this year and join Ferrari for the 2025 season.
Mercedes announced last September the seven-times world champion had signed a new two-year deal which would keep him at the team until the end of next year. However it has now confirmed Hamilton is using an exit clause in that contract to leave in order to drive for another team in 2025.
Ferrari subsequently announced Hamilton will join them for next season on a “multi-year contract”. Hamilton’s move will mark a major change for the driver who is embarking on his 18th season in F1, all of which have been powered by Mercedes.
Last week Ferrari announced Charles Leclerc had extended his deal to drive for the team beyond this season. However the absence of a renewal for his team mate Carlos Sainz Jnr prompted speculation over his future. With Sainz’s contract ending after this season, Hamilton can slot in alongside Leclerc at the team.
The upcoming season will therefore be Hamilton’s last with Mercedes. He joined the team in 2013 after starting his F1 career at McLaren six years earlier. Having won the 2008 world championship with McLaren, Hamilton’s move to Mercedes propelled him to becoming the most successful F1 driver of all time. Six further world championships gave him a record-equalling total of seven, and he became the first driver in the sport’s history to win more than 100 grands prix.
However the team has failed to get to grips with new technical regulations introduced by F1 in 2022. Hamilton has not won a race in the last two seasons. Last year, he was clearly dissatisfied at the team’s failure to make more drastic changes to its unsuccessful 2022 car.
Hamilton said he’s “had an amazing 11 years with this team and I’m so proud of what we have achieved together.
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“Mercedes has been part of my life since I was 13 years old. It’s a place where I have grown up, so making the decision to leave was one of the hardest decisions I have ever had to make. But the time is right for me to take this step and I’m excited to be taking on a new challenge.”
He added he will be “forever grateful for the incredible support of my Mercedes family, especially Toto [Wolff, team principal] for his friendship and leadership and I want…
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