Lewis Hamilton moving to Ferrari was shocking news for most of the F1 community but even more so for the people working at Mercedes, who had gotten accustomed to seeing him in their overalls for over a decade. Upon learning that 2024 would be Hamilton’s final season with the Silver Arrows, they expressed their disappointment to him in their own way.
Hamilton had taken the team out for paint-balling around the time Ferrari news broke out. What was supposed to be a friendly game between colleagues over at the Brackley-based outfit turned into something entirely different.
They had all ganged up on Hamilton, letting him know that they weren’t happy with his decision to join the Maranello-based outfit. “I got lots of shots,” he said ahead of the Abu Dhabi GP which will be his last race for Mercedes. “Yeah I had loads of bruises yeah people went in on me that day.”
“I took some of the team paint balling and they had just found out [about his move to ferrari]…”
“I got lots of shots.. yeah i had loads of bruises yeah people went in on me that day.” #F1 || #AbuDhabiGP pic.twitter.com/PExLm0KM4z
— sim (@sim3744) December 5, 2024
Of course, this wasn’t because they hated Hamilton or wanted to hurt him, but because they were upset that from 2025 onwards, the man who won six World Championships with them, wouldn’t be around anymore. Sadly, they have had to come to terms with it.
23 races have passed since Hamilton’s impending departure was announced, and with just one outing remaining, Mercedes would be looking to give him the best send-off possible.
End of Mercedes’ Hamilton era
Hamilton has been racing for Mercedes since 2013, but has been associated with them for over 20 years because it was the German brand that helped him get into F1 with McLaren. While at Woking, he would also drive F1 cars powered by Mercedes’ power unit.
Hamilton helped Mercedes shape into what it is today — one of the biggest names in the sport. In addition to his six titles, he contributed to the Silver Arrows’ eight consecutive Constructors’ Championship wins between 2014 and 2021.
Celebrating 12 years of countless memories, and one of the most succesful partnerships of all-time in F1 ❤️
Mark the occasion with our special LH wallpapers
— Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team (@MercedesAMGF1) December 4, 2024
The team remembers this, and will pay a tribute to Hamilton this weekend at the Abu Dhabi GP. Mercedes had already announced that it would print the names of select fans who wanted to say ‘thank you’ to Hamilton on his W15 for the weekend. Plus, they unveiled a special $600k G-Class machine named HOF Sir Class — a nod to Sir Lewis Hamilton.
