As we all know, even before the start of the 2024 Formula 1 season, it was announced that Lewis Hamilton would drive for Ferrari in 2025. This news took Mercedes by surprise, as they did not expect a departure from the seven-time world champion. Lewis Hamilton will join the Italian team next year, beginning a new chapter of his Formula 1 career at the age of 40.
In F1 history, there are precedents where drivers have been allowed to familiarize themselves with their new car once their final season with their current team has concluded.
Fernando Alonso is a recent example. After announcing mid-way through the 2022 season that he had agreed to leave Alpine for Aston Martin, he was allowed to drive a green F1 car for the first time during the Abu Dhabi tests after the last race of the year. Apparently, Hamilton will not have the same opportunity. According to BBC Sport, there is “zero” chance that the seven-time F1 champion will get behind the wheel of a Ferrari, as he is still under contract with Mercedes until the end of December.
Lewis Hamilton has decided to leave Mercedes, the team that saw him mature and become the champion he is today. Lewis Hamilton’s triumphs with Mercedes came to an abrupt halt in the much-discussed 2021 season finale in Abu Dhabi. Since then, the relationship between team and driver has not been idyllic, leading to Lewis’s decision to move to Ferrari, with Mercedes now focusing on Kimi Antonelli.
Much is expected from Kimi Antonelli, given his results in junior categories and the excitement surrounding his early promotion to F1. To help the 18-year-old integrate smoothly, team boss Toto Wolff has stated that he will follow the same approach outlined by former McLaren boss Ron Dennis when he promoted Hamilton to the top category in 2007.
The Austrian said: “Hamilton’s growth in the junior categories and his impact in Formula 1 happened at a time when many more tests could be done than Kimi has been able to do now. Ron said back then that Lewis needed to take it easy to get used to F1, also because [Fernando] Alonso was at McLaren.
“However, that never happened—Lewis was immediately competitive and successful. With the current preparation, Kimi can get in our car and be competitive. However, today’s F1 is a different vehicle from what it was during Hamilton’s debut. There are many more dimensions and facets compared to the past.
“There is more pressure and social media, so I think it’s important that everything moves in the right direction, maintaining the right priorities and avoiding what is not essential. The goal is to create a new success story, as happened with Hamilton.”
Ferrari could still reach an agreement with Mercedes to allow Lewis to get accustomed to the new car, but it won’t be easy. The feeling, especially in recent years, has become even more important, considering that drivers have very few tests, and Lewis Hamilton will have to start from scratch with a new team that may work differently from Mercedes.
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