Lewis Hamilton will drive in Rosso Corsa in 2025 as he makes the switch to Ferrari – a move he has been linked to for many years.
Hamilton will be replacing Carlos Sainz as he becomes Charles Leclerc’s new teammate, a driver who himself had recently tied down his future to the Scuderia.
The move means that Hamilton will be moving away from a partnership that has lasted 17 year long partnership, ever since he stepped foot in a Mercedes-powered McLaren for his debut in 2007. He will be joining a long lineage of prestigious drivers who have driven for Ferrari, such as Juan Manuel Fangio, Nigel Mansell, Alan Prost, Sebastian Vettel and fellow 7 time world champion Michael Schumacher.
Lewis Hamilton joins the most successful team in F1 history as the most successful driver in history. He has won 103 races over his time at McLaren and Mercedes, alongside achieving 104 pole positions and 197 podium finishes to match his 7 world championships. He was also part of a Mercedes team that won 8 Constructor’s Championships in a row from 2014-2021.
However the last couple of seasons at the Silver Arrows haven’t gone as hoped. 2022 was Hamilton’s first winless season in his entire career, and he became more vocally frustrated with the direction the team had developed the car.
Hamilton stated that leaving Mercedes was “one of the hardest decisions I have ever had to make”, and that “I have had an amazing 11 years with this team and I’m so proud of what we have achieved together. Mercedes has been part of my life since I was 13 years old.”
He continues: “the time is right for me to take this step and I’m excited to be taking on a new challenge. I will be forever grateful for the incredible support of my Mercedes family, especially Toto for his friendship and leadership and I want to finish on a high together.”
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff highlighted that Mercedes’ “relationship with Lewis has become the most successful the sport has seen, and that’s something we can look back on with pride; Lewis will always be an important part of Mercedes motorsport history.
“However, we knew our partnership would come to a natural end at some point, and that day has now come. We accept Lewis’s decision to seek a fresh challenge, and our opportunities for the future are exciting to contemplate. But for now, we still have one season to go, and we are focused on going racing to deliver a strong 2024.”
Carlos Sainz released a statement following the news, confirming he will be leaving Ferrari at the end of the season. He adds: “We still have a long season ahead of us and, like always, I will give my absolute best for the team and for the Tifosi all around the world. News about my future will be announced in due course.”
Hamilton has raced against Ferrari multiple times in title battles over the years, such as in 2007 against Kimi Raikonnen, 2008 against Felipe Massa, and 2017 & 2018 against Sebastian Vettel. It is now his turn to bring world titles back to Maranello for the first time since the late 2000’s.
