Lewis Hamilton to join Ferrari after 11 years with Mercedes

Seven-time Formula One world champion Lewis Hamilton will join Ferrari in a shock move after 11 years with Mercedes-AMG.

Lewis Hamilton will leave Mercedes to join Ferrari at the end of the 2024 Formula 1 season. (LAT Images/Mercedes-AMG Petronas)

After heavy speculation, Ferrari released a short statement confirming the news.

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

Hamilton will join Ferrari for the 2025 season, a year ahead of new engine regulations will be introduced into the sport.

Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 team responded to the news shortly after.

“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,” said team principal and CEO Toto Wolff.

“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.”

Hamilton said “I have had an amazing 11 years with this team and I'm so proud of what we have achieved together,” thanking the team and manufacturer had had been with since age of 13.

“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.”