Credits: IMAGO / PanoramiC

Lewis Hamilton is using the one-week break from F1 to carry out promotional duties for his team, Mercedes. He recently visited a school in Kuala Lumpur, to attend an event organized by Petronas, one of Mercedes’ main sponsors. While addressing the audience, Hamilton let them know about his love for the Silver Arrows, with whom he created history over the last decade.

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In a TikTok video posted on X (formerly Twitter) by @44britcedes, Hamilton can be heard saying, “I still love this team so much.”

 The rest of his statement is largely inaudible owing to the echo in the hall. However, fans got the gist of the emotion with what was comprehensible through the recording.

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Given that Hamilton is awaiting his move to Ferrari in 2025, this comment carries a different emotional value. Earlier this year, the 7-time champion made the startling revelation of his move away from Mercedes. It will bring an end to one of F1’s most dominant partnerships of all time. Hamilton won six world titles himself, and helped Mercedes win eight constructors’ titles.

However, things haven’t been the same since the start of the ground-effect regulations era in 2022. The engineers have failed to develop an understanding of the concept and are struggling to produce a championship-winning car. Meanwhile, the baton of dominance has passed over to Red Bull, who are now creating waves in the sport themselves.

Hamilton’s Ferrari move comes in the form of a gamble, though. As of now, the Maranello-based outfit is nowhere close to challenging Red Bull to a championship fight. However, they have a chance of turning their fortunes in 2026 when the regulations change once again. To make sure the development of that car happens under his supervision, Hamilton planned the move a year in advance.

Will Mercedes tread with caution over leaking secrets to Lewis Hamilton?

Lewis Hamilton, despite his impending Ferrari move, insists that his focus will only be on Mercedes in 2024. However, the Silver Arrows find themselves in a sticky situation. They need to disclose every bit of information and data to Hamilton in order to develop the car further as the season passes. At the same time, they need to hide crucial data points from him to avoid leaking any potentially secret information to Ferrari.

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That is precisely the concern Sky Sports commentator Martin Brundle raised before the start of the season. However, presenter Simon Lazenby felt Mercedes owed all their success to Hamilton and therefore, should think twice before taking any such decision.

In a video uploaded by Sky Sports on YouTube, Lazenby said, “The thing with Lewis, it’s an exceptional case, isn’t it? At the end of the day, it’s Lewis and Lewis has brought everything to Mercedes. Therefore, they kind of do owe him a little bit, I think they owe him everything really and they probably owe him the respect that he deserves to treat him like the great champion that he is for the time that he has remaining at Mercedes.”

This is not the only concern plaguing the Brackley-based outfit. They have the herculean task of finding the replacement for the man who created history with them. As per reports, options range from 2-time champion Fernando Alonso to F2 rookie Kimi Antonelli. Making predictions is a futile exercise as team boss Toto Wolff has at least 4 more options between those two.