F1 star Lewis Hamilton recently made the surprising decision to leave Mercedes-AMG Petronas and join Scuderia Ferrari at the end of the 2024 season.
On Friday, Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff made it clear he had no hard feelings over Lewis’ decision.
Wolff also admitted that he was aware of rumors about Lewis’ possible departure, but did not know until the F1 star revealed his intentions during a breakfast meeting earlier this week.
Lewis will join Ferrari for the 2025 season after racing for Mercedes for more than a decade. He won six of the seven championships with his team.
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Britain’s Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes GP Executive Director Toto Toto stand on stage at an F1 live event during a preview ahead of the F1 Australian Grand Prix at the Melbourne Grand Prix Circuit in Melbourne, Australia, March 13, 2019. Wolf. (Clive Mason/Getty Images)
“What surprised me was that I had heard the rumor a few days ago and wanted to wait for the breakfast I had planned, but it was Wednesday morning. And at this time, he broke the news. ” Wolff said.
“But, you know, you can be very direct with me, because I’m also very direct. So once he says, ‘This is what I’m going to do.’ , that was the case. I didn’t try to convince him otherwise. ”
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Wolff added that he still considers Hamilton a friend.
“In the future, we’re going to debate whether we could have done this differently, but I don’t hold any grudges,” Wolff said.
Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton celebrates after Hamilton’s race victory and seventh world championship win at the F1 Turkish Grand Prix at Istanbul Park Circuit Racecourse in Istanbul, November 15, 2020. Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff (right). (AP Photo/Kenan Asyali, Pool, File)
Hamilton agreed a multi-year contract extension with Mercedes in August, but has activated a release clause that allows him to leave the club after a year.
Wolff said the fact that Hamilton was looking for a new challenge was not surprising, but the timing was surprising. He suggested Hamilton may be “rolling the dice” as the 39-year-old driver seeks another chance at his eighth F1 title.
“We knew it could be beneficial for both parties to sign a short-term contract. We could not sign him for a longer period and he chose the option of termination. “I fully respect that you can change things,” Wolf said. “It’s a different situation.”
Lewis Hamilton of Mercedes competes in the F1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix at Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, on November 26, 2023. (Beata Saursel/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Hamilton is race winless in 2021 and just lost the title to Max Verstappen in the final race of the season in Abu Dhabi.
Wolff said he had no concerns about Hamilton’s involvement in Mercedes’ car development, even if he plans to join a rival.
“I have no doubts about Lewis’ integrity when it comes to sharing information,” Wolff said.
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Mercedes is a major supporter of Hamilton’s efforts to improve diversity in F1. In 2021, he and his team worked together to launch his Ignite initiative to provide more opportunities for people from diverse backgrounds aiming for careers in fields such as motorsport, science and engineering.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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