Toto Wolff sent a heartfelt message to Lewis Hamilton after the Brit’s final race for Mercedes, saying ahead of his move to Ferrari: “If we can’t win, you should win.”
Hamilton, who started 16th in his final race for the Silver Arrows in Abu Dhabi, surged through the field and with a last-lap overtake on teammate George Russell, the 39-year-old finished just outside the podium in fourth.
After 12 years and six world titles with Mercedes, Hamilton moves to Ferrari in 2025, ending the greatest driver-team partnership in F1 history. Hamilton did some doughnuts on the home straight after the race.
Wolff told Hamilton on the radio after the race: “Lewis that was the drive of a world champion, amazing.
“If we can’t win [next year], then you should win.”
In an emotional conversation between Hamilton, Wolff and race engineer Peter Bonnington, Hamilton said: “That was fun. We dreamed a lot but together we believed and achieved things as a team.
“Thank you for all the courage, the determination and passion for supporting me. It started out as a leap of faith and turned into a journey into the history books.
“I’m so grateful to everyone at the factory. From the bottom of my heart all the best.
“I love you guys, I really really do.”
Bonnington said: “Stellar job, it’s been a pleasure all the way.”
Hamilton finished the 2024 season in his worst-ever championship position – seventh – but did manage to break his 31-month win duck at Silverstone in July.
Lando Norris won the season-ending race and in doing so guided McLaren to the 2024 constructors’ championship – their first team title in 26 years.
The 2025 season starts with the Australian Grand Prix on 16 March.
