GUWAHATI: Seven-times world champion Lewis Hamilton, Formula One's most successful driver of all time, will race for Scuderia Ferrari from 2025 after the activation of a release clause in the Mercedes contract he signed in August.
The big news, confirmed first by Mercedes and then in a one-line statement from Ferrari, came after a day of mounting speculation with the world awaiting news from Maranello and Brackley.
"Scuderia Ferrari is pleased to announce that Lewis Hamilton will be joining the team in 2025, on a multi-year contract," Ferrari said while talking to the media.
"I have had an amazing 11 years with this team and am so proud of what we have achieved together. Mercedes has been part of my life since I was 13 years old," said Hamilton in the Mercedes statement.
"It's a place where I have grown up, so making the decision to leave was one of the hardest decisions I have ever had to make. But the time is right for me to take this step and I'm excited to be taking on a new challenge," he further added.
Hamilton said he wanted to finish his time at Mercedes on a high and was "100% committed to delivering the best performance I can this season and making my last year with the Silver Arrows, one to remember".
The 39-year-old Briton is set to replace Spanish driver Carlos Sainz at Ferrari alongside Charles Leclerc. It gives the Italian team a world champion in one of their cars for the first time since Germany's Sebastian Vettel left in 2020.