Losing Lewis Hamilton to Ferrari after signing him to a
one-year deal with an option for a second, Toto Wolff doesn’t regret the terms
of the Briton’s last Mercedes contract as everyone “has a shelf life”.
As things played out, it worked for Wolff as he avoided a
future conversation where he might have had to tell the seven-time World
Champion that Mercedes want to stop.
Toto Wolff: It helps us because it avoids the moment
where…
Hamilton shocked
the motorsport world early this year when he announced that 2024 would be his
12th and final season with Mercedes, the team with whom he won six of his seven
Drivers’ Championship titles.
The 39-year-old had exercised an exit clause in his
latest Mercedes contract, which he had signed just six months before, to leave
the Brackley team after year one as year two was an option.
Instead, he’ll
race for Ferrari in 2025, partnering Charles Leclerc having signed a
multi-year contract with the Scuderia.
At the time questions were raised about whether Mercedes
had fumbled the situation given they’d only locked Hamilton into a one-year
contract for 2024, leaving the door open for him to leave.
Wolff responded to that, saying: “We’re big boys, we knew
that by signing a short-term contract, it could be of benefit for both sides.
“We couldn’t commit for a longer period, and he’s taken the
option to exit. We totally respect that you can change your mind. There’s
different circumstances. Switching to Ferrari, maybe for the last gig in his
career, maybe rolling the dice a bit. I can follow that decision.”
However, in a new book released on Thursday, ‘Inside
Mercedes F1: Life in the Fast Lane’, he’s shared more details about why
Mercedes were only willing to give Hamilton one confirmed season. And the
Briton’s age played a role in that.
“There’s a reason why we only signed a one-plus-one-year contract,” Wolff explained.
