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While Red Bull has crushed the competition in the last two years, Ferrari and Mercedes have had close battles in both years for second place in the constructors’ championship, with Ferrari finishing ahead in 2022 and Mercedes finishing ahead in 2023.
It is far from clear that Hamilton is best placed to achieve his goal of an eighth championship with Ferrari, which has struggled in recent years.
Ferrari hasn’t won a drivers’ championship since 2007, despite signing all-time greats like Fernando Alonso and Sebastian Vettel since then. The team has suffered a series of mechanical failures and strategy errors during races in recent years, but remains the prestigious name in the sport.
The surprise news comes just over a month before the start of the new season, which begins with the Bahrain Grand Prix on March 2.
“I will be forever grateful for the incredible support of my Mercedes family, especially Toto. [Wolff] for your friendship and leadership and I want to finish together on a high. “I am 100% committed to delivering the best performance I can this season and making my final year with the Silver Arrows one to remember,” Hamilton said Thursday in his statement.
It was rumored last year that Hamilton was considering a future move to Ferrari, but he denied those rumors during the Monaco Grand Prix.
“Naturally, when you are negotiating a contract, there will always be speculation. And I think ultimately that’s… unless you hear from me, then that’s it,” Hamilton said, joking that they may have been a result of journalists getting “bored” between races.
Leclerc also addressed questions at the time about whether he would welcome Hamilton into the team.
“Lewis is an incredible driver, he has achieved a lot in this sport. So I think anyone on the grid would love to have Lewis as a teammate as everyone would learn a lot from him,” Leclerc said at the time, adding that he was happy to have Sainz as a teammate.
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