It’s like approaching doomsday. We imagine grey skies and the sounds of crows cawing. Tumbleweeds roll against a gloomy setting. In the world of F1, it’s the sound of Twitter notifications, growing memes, and endless refreshing of timelines as pundits provide the latest updates. On the 1st of February, Lewis Hamilton‘s alleged Ferrari contract had bells tolling.
What had long been classified as rumors was now slowly becoming reality. However, as the open secret just awaits the final word from the man himself, there were telling signs during the off-season that could have had us better prepared for this moment.
The Mercedes contract surely threw us off the scent, but small moments could’ve been pieces to the bigger puzzle. The first was Monster’s departure from Mercedes’ list of sponsors. While the energy drink set its sights on McLaren, their partnership with Hamilton continues something that should’ve raised the red flags in the first place. Mercedes has long been associated with the drinks company and this sudden change in allegiance left many confused.
Tommy Hilfiger, the brand Lewis Hamilton brought into Mercedes and has even had many partnerships in the past, is now pushing George Russell into the spotlight. Making Russell their new partner, the posts have increased, even his girlfriend is involved and Russell is slowly but surely shifting into the Hilfiger fashion scene.
Even Peroni, who has just signed a deal with Ferrari, made a cryptic social media post that may have gone unnoticed by some. See the little car in the middle? What’s the number on there? This post was made two days ago…
Other signs that add to the Lewis Hamilton-Ferrari conspiracy
While the Monster and Hilfiger instances make sense from a business perspective, there have been smaller moments throughout the season and the off-season that may or may not have had a role to play in this hullabaloo. And only 5 months after declaring his loyalty and aspirations with a contract extension? Surely it all bubbled up into this.
Most recently, Nicolas Hamilton publicly celebrated Leclerc’s bumper contract extension by cheering him on under an Instagram post; possibly happy for his brother’s new teammate? Who knows.
A moment from the season comes to mind when Charles Leclerc was asked about “speculations in the media” regarding his future teammate at Ferrari. When asked what he looks for in a teammate, Leclerc turns to his right with a sweet smile on his face, giggling as he says, “Hello, Lewis!”
Plus, the history between Fred Vasseur and Lewis Hamilton, the constant back and forth that was claimed to be innocent at the time, surely something was cooking. Hamilton does not seem like the kind of man to make such a big move on a whim.
Lewis Hamilton in Scarlet Red. The deal is done, the unfathomable has occurred. As the world struggles to comprehend what could have gone wrong in the picture-perfect family of Mercedes, the star son has decided to break ties with the team he’s changed the game with. Now, we wait for Hamilton’s dramatic social media announcement.
