Mercedes Formula 1 boss Toto Wolff says Lewis Hamilton’s exit from the team at the end of this year would have been understandable if it was Red Bull he was moving to.
Hamilton has become the sport’s most decorated driver in a career that has been powered by Mercedes and had admitted he wanted to remain aligned with the marque.
However, the Briton has elected to activate a break clause in his Mercedes deal – signed last August – to agree upon a switch to Ferrari from the beginning of next season.
With Ferrari having trailed three points behind Mercedes last season, Wolff pointed out there was “not much” between Hamilton’s current team and his future one.
Both teams proved unable to provide a challenge to the dominance of Red Bull, who romped to victory in all but one race to comfortably retain both championships.
Therefore, Wolff contends to Motorsport Total that a move to the reigning champions would have made it clearer “what the drive” is behind Hamilton’s Mercedes departure.
Hamilton’s choice to open a new chapter with Ferrari comes amid Mercedes’ failure to provide him with a title-contending car since the return to ground effect aero in 2022.
The Brackley-based squad has struggled to nail down a concept under the latest regulations and Hamilton has concluded the past two seasons without notching a win.
“I also understand the worries of a driver,” Wolff addressed. “We all share them.
“What was perhaps not so [visible], even for him [was] the steam that is in the team, the forward drive to do things better. The mentality is: If we fall, we get up.
“I have no idea how many times we’ll fall. I know we’ll always get up again,” he continued. “We’re [behind] here with the new regulations against Red Bull. And the others aren’t sleeping either.”
However, Wolff insists that things are “always moving forward” within Mercedes as the eight-time Constructors’ champions prepare to unveil its revamped W15 car.
“And when we look back in ten or 20 years, there will be many [more] World Cups,” he said “But of course, that’s a long-term perspective, [it] doesn’t play a role for Lewis”.
The Austrian team boss also clarified that it was “not a disappointment” within the team when he and Technical Director James Allison announced Hamilton’s intention.
While he admits that his colleagues took it as a “surprise” in regards to the timing, Wolff addressed that Mercedes has adopted an attitude of “just always looking forward”.
According to Wolff, the question he has received most in the aftermath has been: “What do we do [20]25 with the drivers and [20]26? Who is sitting there in the car?”
Wolff is adamant that the team is “very much focused on the future” and with the 2024 campaign on the horizon, “there’s always time for nostalgia” regarding Hamilton.
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