02-02-2024, 01:28 PM
Toto Wolff reveals how Lewis Hamilton told him about Ferrari switch.
Addressing media on Friday morning, Wolff explained the timeline of events over the past days in order to clarify how and when he found out the driver with whom he’s shared so much success with had opted to leave for a rival team.
“When we re-signed the contract with Lewis, we opted for shorter term,” Wolff said.
“So the events are not a surprise, [but] maybe the timing. So what happened is that we got together for coffee in my place in Oxford, and him returning to the factory, and he said to me he’d decided to race for Ferrari in 2025.
“That was basically it, we had a good hour of conversation and… this is where we are.”
Wolff said he isn’t quite sure what had tempted Hamilton away from Mercedes so soon after signing his new contract deal.
“I cannot tell you exactly,” he said.
“You need to ask Lewis why he changed his mind. How he framed it to me is perfectly understandable – he needed a new challenge, that he was looking for a different environment, and that it was maybe the last possibility to do something else.
“We’re big boys. We knew that, by signing a short-term contract, it could be of benefit for both sides.
“We couldn’t commit for a longer period and he’s taken the option to exit. So we totally respect that you can change your mind with different circumstances.
Switching to Ferrari, maybe for the last peak in his career, [he’s] maybe rolling the dice a bit. I can follow that decision.”
Obviously there is the lure of driving for Ferrari, it's every drivers dream, at his age its also Lewis's last chance.
I just wonder after reading this statement if the short term contract with Mercedes irked Lewis, or does he know something we don't about the new Mercedes or the 2026 Ferrari, I don't suppose we will fully understand until his auto biography.
Addressing media on Friday morning, Wolff explained the timeline of events over the past days in order to clarify how and when he found out the driver with whom he’s shared so much success with had opted to leave for a rival team.
“When we re-signed the contract with Lewis, we opted for shorter term,” Wolff said.
“So the events are not a surprise, [but] maybe the timing. So what happened is that we got together for coffee in my place in Oxford, and him returning to the factory, and he said to me he’d decided to race for Ferrari in 2025.
“That was basically it, we had a good hour of conversation and… this is where we are.”
Wolff said he isn’t quite sure what had tempted Hamilton away from Mercedes so soon after signing his new contract deal.
“I cannot tell you exactly,” he said.
“You need to ask Lewis why he changed his mind. How he framed it to me is perfectly understandable – he needed a new challenge, that he was looking for a different environment, and that it was maybe the last possibility to do something else.
“We’re big boys. We knew that, by signing a short-term contract, it could be of benefit for both sides.
“We couldn’t commit for a longer period and he’s taken the option to exit. So we totally respect that you can change your mind with different circumstances.
Switching to Ferrari, maybe for the last peak in his career, [he’s] maybe rolling the dice a bit. I can follow that decision.”
Obviously there is the lure of driving for Ferrari, it's every drivers dream, at his age its also Lewis's last chance.
I just wonder after reading this statement if the short term contract with Mercedes irked Lewis, or does he know something we don't about the new Mercedes or the 2026 Ferrari, I don't suppose we will fully understand until his auto biography.
"When a man holds you round the throat, I don't think he has come to apologise"
Ayrton Senna on Nigel Mansell, SPA 1987.
![[+]](https://www.f1banter.co.uk/images/bootbb/collapse_collapsed.png)
