The Lewis Hamilton announcement that changed Formula 1 came on February 1, 2024, when Ferrari confirmed the seven-time world champion would join Scuderia Ferrari from the 2025 season on a multi-year contract. The decision ended his long Mercedes chapter and began one of racing’s most anticipated new partnerships.
What Was the Lewis Hamilton Announcement?
Ferrari’s official statement was brief but significant. On February 1, 2024, the Italian team announced that Hamilton would join its Formula 1 operation in 2025 under a multi-year agreement, confirming months of intense speculation surrounding one of the sport’s biggest names.
The announcement mattered because Hamilton had spent the majority of his Formula 1 career with Mercedes. His move therefore represented more than a driver transfer. It brought together the sport’s most successful active champion and its most historically recognizable racing team.
Ferrari did not disclose the full financial terms or precise duration of Hamilton’s contract in its announcement. Those details should therefore be separated from later media reports and speculation, which are not equivalent to an official confirmation from the team.
Why Did Lewis Hamilton Leave Mercedes?
Hamilton’s departure followed an extraordinary partnership with Mercedes that produced six of his seven Drivers’ World Championships. The relationship began when he joined the works team in 2013, after six seasons with McLaren, and became one of Formula 1’s defining competitive eras.
Mercedes had announced Hamilton’s contract extension in 2023, but the agreement included an option that allowed him to leave after the 2024 season. That contractual mechanism made the Ferrari move possible while allowing Hamilton to complete his final campaign with Mercedes.
For Hamilton, Ferrari offered a fundamentally different challenge. Driving for the Maranello team carried unique prestige because of Ferrari’s history, global following, and place within Formula 1. The move gave Hamilton an opportunity to pursue success in the sport’s most famous red cars.
| Field | Details |
|---|---|
| Full Name | Sir Lewis Carl Davidson Hamilton |
| Age | 41 (born January 7, 1985) |
| Birthplace | Stevenage, England |
| Nationality | British |
| Profession | Formula 1 racing driver |
| Current Team | Scuderia Ferrari |
| Height | 1.74 m (5 ft 9 in) |
| Education | The John Henry Newman School; Cambridge Arts and Sciences |
| Years Active | 2001–present |
| Notable Works | Formula 1 career with McLaren, Mercedes and Ferrari; F1 (2025) producer |
| Awards & Achievements | 7-time F1 World Champion; Knight Bachelor; 106 Grand Prix wins |
| Spouse/Partner | No publicly confirmed spouse or current partner |
| Social Media | Instagram: @lewishamilton |
Hamilton’s Historic Mercedes Career
Hamilton’s Mercedes record explains why the announcement generated such attention. He won six Drivers’ Championships with the team, adding to the title he had already secured with McLaren in 2008. His Mercedes years also produced numerous victories, pole positions, podiums, and team championships.
His partnership with Mercedes became especially dominant after the introduction of the turbo-hybrid power-unit era in 2014. Hamilton won the championship that year and then added titles in 2015, 2017, 2018, 2019, and 2020, completing six Mercedes championship seasons.
The scale of that success made the Ferrari decision unusual. Few established champions voluntarily leave a team with such a successful history unless they believe a new environment can provide a meaningful opportunity. Hamilton’s Ferrari move therefore carried sporting risk and enormous symbolic value.
Why Ferrari Wanted Lewis Hamilton
Ferrari’s decision combined experience with competitive ambition. Hamilton arrived as a seven-time world champion with a long record of winning at the highest level, giving the team a driver capable of providing extensive technical feedback while competing alongside Charles Leclerc.
The pairing with Leclerc was particularly intriguing because both drivers had established themselves as elite performers. Leclerc had already become Ferrari’s central long-term driver, while Hamilton brought decades of Formula 1 experience and a championship record that few drivers in history could match.
Ferrari’s interest also reflected the significance of Hamilton’s global profile. His arrival generated attention beyond normal driver-market coverage, strengthening the visibility of Ferrari’s Formula 1 program while creating a high-profile partnership between two globally recognized sporting names.
When Did Lewis Hamilton Join Ferrari?
Hamilton officially became a Ferrari driver at the beginning of the 2025 Formula 1 season. The transition followed his final Mercedes campaign in 2024 and brought an end to his 12-season association with the German manufacturer’s works team.
One of the most visible changes was Hamilton’s new working relationship inside Ferrari. Riccardo Adami became his race engineer for 2025 after previously working with Ferrari drivers including Sebastian Vettel and Carlos Sainz, replacing Hamilton’s long-time Mercedes engineer Peter Bonnington.
The change in engineering partnership was significant because Bonnington had worked with Hamilton for many years. Formula 1 reported that their 12-year partnership produced 84 Grand Prix victories and six World Championships, illustrating the scale of Hamilton’s adjustment at Ferrari.
Lewis Hamilton’s First Ferrari Season
Hamilton’s first Ferrari season proved more difficult than many pre-season expectations suggested. Ferrari finished fourth in the 2025 Constructors’ Championship and did not win a Grand Prix, while Hamilton completed the season without a podium finish.
That result represented an unusual statistical setback for Hamilton. According to Formula 1’s end-of-year assessment, 2025 was the first season of his Formula 1 career in which he failed to stand on the podium during a Grand Prix weekend.
There were still important positives. Hamilton won the Sprint at the Chinese Grand Prix, demonstrating that his pace remained competitive in Ferrari machinery even though the full Grand Prix campaign did not produce the results he and the team wanted.
The 2025 season also showed why a major team change cannot be judged simply by a driver’s previous record. Hamilton had to adapt to Ferrari’s car, procedures, personnel, and technical philosophy after more than a decade within Mercedes’ system.
The Lewis Hamilton Announcement and His 2026 Ferrari Chapter
Hamilton entered 2026 for his second Ferrari campaign, again partnering Charles Leclerc. Ferrari retained the same driver lineup as it entered a new technical era, with major Formula 1 regulation changes creating a fresh competitive environment across the grid.
Ferrari also changed Hamilton’s engineering arrangement. In January 2026, the team confirmed that Adami had moved to the Ferrari Driver Academy, where he took a management and development role, ending his stint as Hamilton’s race engineer after one season.
Carlo Santi subsequently took over the race-engineering duties on an interim basis. Hamilton described the change as difficult, but the adjustment came during a broader effort to improve his working environment and help him feel more comfortable with Ferrari’s 2026 car.
The results improved significantly. Hamilton secured his first Ferrari Grand Prix podium in China in March 2026 and then won the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix in June, giving Ferrari its first Sunday victory of the season and Hamilton his first Grand Prix win for the team.
The Barcelona victory was especially meaningful because it ended Hamilton’s wait for a Sunday triumph in Ferrari colors. Formula 1 reported that he won by nearly 20 seconds after Ferrari used a three-stop strategy in difficult conditions.
By July 2026, Hamilton had collected five podium finishes from the opening 10 rounds of the season, including his Barcelona victory. Formula 1 also reported that he sat second in the championship standings before the Hungarian Grand Prix, placing him firmly within the title conversation.
What the Announcement Means for Formula 1
Hamilton’s move to Ferrari reshaped the competitive and commercial landscape of Formula 1. It placed a seven-time champion in the sport’s most recognizable team while creating a high-profile driver pairing with Leclerc, one of the championship’s established younger stars.
The move also changed the narrative around Hamilton’s late career. At Mercedes, his legacy was already secure. At Ferrari, he had to prove that he could adapt to a different technical culture and still compete for victories after more than a decade with the same works team.
That challenge became clearer during 2025, when Ferrari struggled to deliver the expected results. Hamilton’s difficulties demonstrated that reputation alone cannot guarantee immediate success, particularly when a driver enters a new organization during a period of technical transition.
His 2026 resurgence changed that conversation. The combination of improved comfort, a more suitable Ferrari car, and stronger results transformed the story from an uncertain first season into a credible attempt to challenge near the front of the championship.
Lewis Hamilton’s Ferrari Future
Hamilton’s stated objective for 2026 has been straightforward. In March, Formula 1 reported that he identified his goal as “to win” as he prepared for his second Ferrari season. His subsequent performances showed that the ambition was supported by meaningful competitive progress.
The most important confirmed point about his future is that Ferrari announced him on a multi-year contract. Claims about additional extensions, retirement dates, or future team changes should not be treated as established facts unless they are confirmed by Ferrari, Hamilton, Mercedes, Formula 1, or another authoritative source.
Hamilton has also spoken positively about his relationship with Ferrari’s 2026 car. In February, he said he felt “in the best place I’ve been in for a long time,” while explaining that he felt more connected to the new machinery than he had to the previous car.
The contrast between his first and second Ferrari seasons is therefore important. His 2025 campaign ended without a Grand Prix podium, while his 2026 campaign had already produced multiple podiums and a Ferrari victory by mid-year.
When Was the Lewis Hamilton Ferrari Announcement Made?
Ferrari announced Hamilton’s move on February 1, 2024. The official statement confirmed that he would join Scuderia Ferrari from the 2025 season on a multi-year contract, making the announcement one of the most significant driver-market developments in modern Formula 1.
When Did Lewis Hamilton Join Ferrari?
Hamilton joined Ferrari for the 2025 Formula 1 season. He completed his final Mercedes campaign in 2024 before beginning his new chapter with Ferrari alongside Charles Leclerc at the start of the following season.
Why Did Lewis Hamilton Leave Mercedes?
Hamilton left Mercedes after exercising the contractual option that allowed him to depart following the 2024 season. The Ferrari opportunity offered a new competitive challenge and fulfilled the long-standing significance attached to driving for Formula 1’s most famous team.
Who Is Lewis Hamilton’s Ferrari Teammate?
Charles Leclerc is Hamilton’s Ferrari teammate. Leclerc joined Ferrari in 2019 and remained with the team for the 2026 season, creating a pairing that combines Hamilton’s championship experience with Leclerc’s established knowledge of Ferrari’s cars and operations.
How Many World Championships Has Lewis Hamilton Won?
Hamilton has won seven Formula 1 Drivers’ World Championships. He captured his first title with McLaren in 2008 and then won six championships with Mercedes, establishing himself among the most successful drivers in the history of the sport.
Is Lewis Hamilton Still Driving for Ferrari?
Yes. Ferrari retained Hamilton and Leclerc as its drivers for the 2026 Formula 1 season. By July 2026, Hamilton had recorded five podiums from the opening 10 rounds and had won the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix for his first Ferrari Grand Prix victory.
Conclusion
The Lewis Hamilton announcement was ultimately much more than a high-profile driver transfer. Ferrari’s February 2024 confirmation marked the beginning of a new phase in the career of a seven-time champion and brought one of Formula 1’s most famous drivers into its most iconic team.
His first Ferrari season showed the difficulty of changing competitive environments, while his 2026 campaign demonstrated the potential of the partnership. The contrast makes the move especially compelling because Hamilton’s Ferrari story is still developing rather than already defined.
The confirmed facts provide a clear picture: Hamilton left Mercedes after a historic partnership, joined Ferrari in 2025 on a multi-year contract, endured a difficult first campaign, and then returned to winning form in 2026. His Ferrari chapter remains one of Formula 1’s central stories.
