This weekend’s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix marks not just the end of the 2024 Formula 1 season, but also several closing chapters in the sport. Drivers such as Kevin Magnussen, Zhou Guanyu, and Valtteri Bottas will be leaving full-time spots on the grid, while Carlos Sainz Jr.’s time with Ferrari will draw to a close. Esteban Ocon is leaving Alpine for Haas, and Nico Hülkenberg is leaving Haas to drive for Sauber in 2025.
Then there is the biggest departure of all: Lewis Hamilton’s shocking move from Mercedes to Ferrari for the next season.
That move brings to a close the most productive partnership in F1 history between a team and a driver, and speaking at the FIA Press Conference on Thursday ahead of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, Hamilton admitted that it has been a difficult year, starting with the initial announcement back in February.
“I mean, the first meeting with Toto [Wolff] at the beginning of the year was awkward, of course. So it was awkward from the get-go, to the day after when I took some of the team paintballing,” began Hamilton. “And they had just found out. So I mean, there’s been loads of moments through the year… Yeah, I got lots of shots from people, yeah, loads of bruises. Yeah, people went in on me that day!
“I think ultimately I anticipated it would be difficult, but massively underestimated how difficult it would be. And it was straining on the relationship very early on, took time for people to get past it. And then just for my own self, it’s been a very emotional year for me,” added Hamilton. “And I think I’ve not been at my best in handling and dealing with those emotions.
“And I think this year, and so many of you have been here my whole career, so some of you, I think, you’ve all seen the worst of me and seen the best of me and I’m not going to apologise for either because I’m only human and I don’t always get it right, and I would definitely would say this year’s been one of the worst in terms of handling that from my side, which I’ll work on trying to be better at.”
Hamilton then changed gears a bit during his remarks.
“But I hope the good and the highs far outweigh the negatives and how I’ve handled it or behaved. And as I said, I just remember the good times, you know. I’ve built some incredible relationships. We’ve gone through. If you imagine, when you’re going when you’re going through a season together with so many people, you know, not only on those race weekends where you’re riding the highs and lows together, but in their personal lives, through marriages, through divorces, through loss of family members, through cancer, through all sorts. You’re going through these journeys with these people,” described the legendary driver. “So it’s a really beautiful journey you go on together. And being that it was so long, the emotions run so deep.”
Asked about his emotions heading into his final race with Mercedes, Hamilton stated that he was feeling “calm,” and looking forward to ending on a positive note.
“Pretty calm at the moment. Feeling positive and excited just to give it all this weekend. Every moment, like through the year, it’s been, you know, every single race has been obviously the last time I’ll race and be in that specific place with the team and I think today, already from like the briefings that we’ve had, like, you’re sitting there and you’re realising these are the last moments with the team, which is… It’s hard to describe the feeling,” added Hamilton. “It’s not the greatest, of course, but I think mostly I’m just really proud of what we’ve achieved. And I have so much pride in this team.”
When asked about what his lasting memory would be of his time at Mercedes, Hamilton had a fascinating answer.
The smiles.
“I think it’s the smiles, when we’ve had the success. I think it’s those moments,” Hamilton said. “Like I remember one particular engineer, for example, I remember our first win in Australia in 2014, I think it was Australia, and I just remember him being in tears when we were on the podium. It’s those moments that I take with me. It’s the emotions that we had in Silverstone this year. It’s all the good bits. Naturally, you mostly remember the good bits.
“And I think it’s just the… I’m just incredibly proud, but also just so grateful to every single individual, both that are here at the track, but also back at the factory that have just worked tirelessly and, you know, been supporting me for all these years from day one.”
Hamilton’s final race with Mercedes gets underway in earnest tomorrow with two practice sessions, ahead of the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
