ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates — Stooped beside his silver and lightless Mercedes W15 automotive at the major instantly of the Yas Marina Circuit on Sunday, Lewis Hamilton paused to take in the while.
It was once the overall future upcoming 12 seasons, 246 grands prix, 84 race wins and 6 drivers’ international championships, making it the longest and maximum a success motive force and workforce partnership within the historical past of F1, that he can be unloved along with his Mercedes automotive. In February, he’ll be racing in crimson for Ferrari.
Balancing on his ft and along with his forearms resting at the sidepod, helmet nonetheless on, Hamilton bowed his head and took at some time to take into accounts the exit he and Mercedes were on in combination. The nice, the unholy. The highs, the lows.
“I just wanted to embrace the moment because it’s the last time I’m going to step into a Mercedes and represent them,” Hamilton mentioned within the media pen upcoming the race, visions glistening. “It’s been the greatest honor of my life.”
The overriding emotion in that while beside the automobile was once gratitude. “I was just giving thanks,” Hamilton mentioned. “Firstly, thanking my own spirit for not giving up, for continuing to push, and thanking everyone that powers and builds that car. I’m proud of everyone.”
Twenty-four hours previous, it felt like Hamilton’s closing burst within the silver automotive could be a troublesome one. Mercedes made a mistake by way of mistiming his closing qualifying run in Q1, departure him a lowly sixteenth at the grid. Toto Wolff, the workforce fundamental, apologized to Hamilton for an “idiotic” mistake that will produce his race a lot, a lot more difficult.
Within the post-qualifying debrief, even because the engineers and strategists rued the mistake, Hamilton reminded them of all of the excellent moments they’d loved in combination. He was once nonetheless hopeful of completing on a prime, offering a swansong tribute to the workforce that has given him such a lot professionally and individually.
And Hamilton did precisely that, turning in a memorable fightback to log off at Mercedes in Abu Dhabi.
From sixteenth, he made up a handful of positions at the opening lap due to incidents forward ahead of sitting at the fringes of the issues. Through working the trade tire technique, the plan was once all the time to run deep at the crispy tire ahead of pitting, surroundings Hamilton up for a last price to the series. Later biding his future and letting the vehicles forward pit, he began transferring into place for a valuable issues haul. Hamilton’s engineer, Pete Bonnington, got here onto the radio towards the tip of the primary stint to mention there was once a imaginable third-place stop at the playing cards, in step with Mercedes’ knowledge.
Hamilton emerged from the pits in 7th position with untouched medium tires, in a position to endure indisposed at the vehicles forward on used, slower hards. For one ultimate future, Bonnington delivered the catchphrase that it was once future for Hamilton to push, one who has inspired the Briton to assert wins and poles during their future in combination.
“OK, Lewis, it’s hammer time!”
Lewis Hamilton began P16 on the Abu Dhabi GP and completed P5. (Picture by way of Luca Martini / SOPA Pictures/Sipa USA)
“When he told me, I was like, I can’t remember the last time he told me ‘hammer time,’” Hamilton mentioned post-race. “I remember I told Bono to say hammer time back in the first year together. I was like, ‘Don’t tell me just, ‘go faster,’ just tell me, ‘It’s hammer time,’ and I’ll know what it is!’”
As all the time, Hamilton were given the memo. He temporarily picked off Nico Hulkenberg and Pierre Gasly ahead of being informed there was once a 14-second hole to his teammate, George Russell, forward in fourth position. The pair got into Abu Dhabi connect on issues from their 3 seasons in combination. This closing stint would choose the intra-team fight. Hamilton mentioned it “took perfection” to catch Russell within the ultimate phases.
It went all of the option to the closing lap. At the radio, Wolff informed Russell to keep in mind the condition, which was once a affectionate reminder to hold issues blank. Russell was once powerless to hold his teammate in the back of anyway when at Flip 9, the similar nook the place Hamilton noticed Max Verstappen draw back to the championship 3 years in the past and reject him a historical 8th name, Hamilton swept round Russell out of doors and moved forward. A courageous, elegant overtake.
“I only caught him right at that last lap, and I was like, it’s now or never,” Hamilton mentioned. Russell idea it was once “quite a fitting way to finish with Lewis, just one second apart after these three years” and was once happy to look his teammate lead to taste. “He deserved it,” Russell mentioned. “The team deserved to give him that send-off.”
As he became in the course of the ultimate few corners, the sky already lit up with fireworks to honor Lando Norris’s win, Hamilton soaked within the closing moments as a Mercedes brilliant prix motive force ahead of crossing the series. The radio messages with Bonnington and Wolff at the cool-down lap have been full of emotion, Bonnington apparently in tears. The top had arrived.
Hamilton was once sure and reflective upcoming his ultimate Mercedes race. (Joe Portlock/Getty Pictures)
Put up-race, the analytical aspect of Wolff contemplated that, with out the bollard getting caught beneath Hamilton’s automotive in qualifying, he may’ve been ready to struggle for victory. Hamilton informed Wolff to in lieu take into accounts the 84 wins they’d already completed in combination.
“These last few races, they don’t change how we feel about it,” Wolff mentioned. “He drove like a world champion today from P16. We played the long game and finished fourth, driving away from the Red Bull. That was a statement of a world champion.”
Hamilton was once additionally satisfied to complete a difficult era on a prime. Regardless of wins at Silverstone and Spa, his first victories since 2021, 7th position nonetheless marks his lowest championship stop in F1, having struggled to gel with the difficult Mercedes automotive during the era. The subtext of his pending travel to Ferrari, introduced originally of February, footing the whole thing this era additionally offered its personal problem.
“It’s been a really turbulent year, probably the longest year of my life, I would say,” Hamilton mentioned. “We’ve known from the beginning that I’m leaving, and it’s like a relationship — when you’ve told whoever the counterpart is that you’re leaving, but you’re living together for a whole year. Lots of ups and downs, emotionally. But we finished off with a high today.”
The one feelings Hamilton felt post-race have been sure. He’d finished his celebratory donuts at the start-finish series, permission given to him as a part of the FIA’s post-race procedures, and nearest long past again to the Mercedes storage to praise along with his workforce, such a lot of of whom have been desperate to get one ultimate image in combination. An enduring reminiscence for all their good fortune. All of the historical past they’ve written.
Hamilton plays a burnout upcoming the Abu Dhabi Formulation One Lavish Prix. (GIUSEPPE CACACE/AFP by the use of Getty Pictures)
The entire weekend were about that. On Thursday, Hamilton took a lot of his engineers and mechanics, together with Bonnington, for a sizzling lap concerning the Yas Marina Circuit. Mercedes nearest held a workforce tournament on Thursday evening that seemed again on Hamilton’s future at Brackley and paid tribute to all their good fortune. Hamilton had incorrect thought it was once taking place and was once if truth be told touched by way of the awe.
“That was super emotional,” he mentioned. “I ain’t got no more tears, really. Everything came out there.”
That didn’t forbid Sunday from being soaked in emotion. Regardless of the demanding situations of this era and the lengthy, awkward see you ahead of he strikes to Ferrari, a fierce rival Hamilton and Mercedes have labored tirelessly to defeat, there has all the time been an underlying appreciate and affection for all they’ve completed in combination. The message from Wolff and the Mercedes board individuals in Abu Dhabi to Hamilton was once that he would all the time be part of their tale and, extra importantly, their public.
When Hamilton made the verdict to leave McLaren for Mercedes again in 2012, many idea it was once the mistaken travel. Few may have predicted their good fortune. Even fewer that the connection would’ve lasted goodbye and run so deep.
As Hamilton put it at the cool-down lap, “What started out as a leap of faith turned into a journey into the history books.” What a exit it’s been.
Supremacy photograph: Sipa USA
