LEWIS HAMILTON bid an emotional farewell to Mercedes as he confirmed his shock exit.
The legendary driver will leave the Silver Arrows at the end of 2024, with Ferrari confirmed Hamilton WILL join them for 2025 and 2026 after penning a whopping £100million contract.
But as the news of his Mercedes departure was announced at 7pm, he broke his silence with a classy message.
Hamilton, 39, said: “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.
“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.
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“But 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.
“I am 100 per cent committed to delivering the best performance I can this season and making my last year with the Silver Arrows, one to remember.”
Hamilton activated a clause in his latest contract to trigger his exit.
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It means the Stevenage star will depart after an 18-year partnership with Mercedes in Formula One.
From his debut season in 2007 to 2012, Hamilton raced for McLaren Mercedes.
And in 2013, he joined the Brackley giants’ F1 team, winning six of his world championship titles.
He came second to team-mate Nico Rosberg in 2016 before agonisingly being pipped on the final lap of the 2021 season by Max Verstappen.
After a nightmare year in 2022, he bounced back to finish third in the drivers’ championship – but his long wait for a chequered flag goes on.
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff – who must find a replacement for Hamilton – added: “In terms of a team-driver pairing, our 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.”
Ferrari confirmed the news minutes after Mercedes, releasing their own statement that simply said: “Scuderia Ferrari is pleased to announce that Lewis Hamilton will be joining the team in 2025, on a multi-year contract.”
The bombshell switch will see him partner Charles Leclerc and comes after Red Bull had made it clear they did not see Hamilton in their team.
And that spells the end for Carlos Sainz at Ferrari.
The Spaniard tweeted: “Following today’s news, Scuderia Ferrari and myself will part ways at the end of 2024.
“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.”
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SunSport understands Hamilton brokered the deal himself thanks to swift negotiations with Ferrari boss Fred Vasseur.
The two are friends and in 2006 Hamilton won the GP2 title driving for Vasseur’s ART teams.
Source: Motorsport - thesun.co.uk
