Formula 1 star Lewis Hamilton to leave Mercedes and join Ferrari next year

Seven-time Formula 1 champion Lewis Hamilton will leave Mercedes for Ferrari next year on a multiyear contract, the two teams announced Thursday.The shock move means one of the sport’s greats will join its most storied team.

 

“Scuderia Ferrari is pleased to announce that Lewis Hamilton will be joining the team in 2025, on a multi-year contract,” Ferrari said in a statement.

Mercedes said Hamilton activated a clause in his contract to leave.

“The Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team and Lewis Hamilton will part ways at the end of the 2024 season,” Mercedes said. “Lewis has activated a release option in the contract announced last August and this season will therefore be his last driving for the Silver Arrows.”

The move begins a thrilling new chapter in Hamilton’s career as he pursues a record-breaking eighth championship. Hamilton, 39, is poised to replace Carlos Sainz, whose contract expires this year, and race alongside Ferrari star Charles Leclerc, who signed a multiyear contract extension with the Italian team last week.

“I have had an amazing 11 years with this team and I’m so proud of what we have achieved together,” Hamilton said. “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.”

Hamilton has driven for Mercedes since 2013 and won six world championships with the team after previously having won one title with McLaren. In 2021, he narrowly lost what would have been a record eighth championship to Red Bull’s Max Verstappen, who went on to dominate the 2022 and 2023 seasons.

The move was first reported by Sky Sports News and ESPN.