Back in 2013, when Lewis Hamilton jumped ship from McLaren to Mercedes, he was going to get $76,000,000 richer, because of the Silver Arrows paying him a bigger salary. However, despite the financials involved, Hamilton has maintained that he never ditched McLaren for money.
Hamilton once told Motorsport.com,
“I had to make a big decision, whether I stayed put and keep trundling along, or go and do something more adventurous. I took that leap of faith, and then we’ve gone one after the other here.”
And Hamilton’s account resonates with that of Frank Worrall, the man who authored the Briton’s biography. Even Worrall stressed on the fact that it was actually the regression of McLaren from a championship-winning team to struggling for podium results that forced Hamilton’s hand.
Many deemed it a career suicide to leave a team like McLaren and go to a mid-field Mercedes. In soccer terms, Jeremy Clarkson even compared it to ditching a legendary team like Manchester United to play for a mid-table club like West Ham. However, three-time F1 champion Niki Lauda famously convinced him to make the move, and the rest as they say is history.
Lewis Hamilton departure coincided with McLaren’s downfall
After the Spygate scandal involving McLaren rocked the F1 world, the Woking-based team had to endure a very difficult period of time. Things began to unravel behind the scenes, and eventually Hamilton left for Mercedes. In 2015, they partnered with Honda which led to arguably their worst ever period in F1.
On the other hand, Lewis Hamilton was pushing himself into a team that had the right people and proven pedigree to win. Alongside Niki Lauda, Ross Brawn was a big pulling factor for Hamilton to consider a move to Brackley.
He explained,
“I think the convincing stage which really made me look into it more was when Ross came around my mum’s house, and sat with me in the kitchen. We had tea, and he showed me what the plan is for the team.”
Hamilton’s arrival in the team really lifted their spirits. The team already had a talented bunch of people around them, but Hamilton’s knack for perfection really pushed everyone to do their utter best.
It is only speculation whether Hamilton would’ve been as successful as he is today if he had stayed back at McLaren. One thing is for sure, because of the Silver Arrows, Lewis Hamilton could live up to his lofty standards and talent.
