Wolff in emotional farewell to Hamilton after Ferrari move

Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff has said a fond farewell to Lewis Hamilton in advance of the latter's move to Ferrari in 2025.

The news of Hamilton's shock switch broke on Thursday, with the teams both confirming that the most successful driver in Formula 1 history was going to shake up the grid.

The 39-year-old had only signed a new contract with Mercedes a few months ago which would keep him driving in the sport into his 40s, and this link up with the most successful team on the F1 grid is likely to see the Brit race until he's at least 42.

READ MORE: Did Ferrari F1 partner drop HUGE Hamilton hint days before move?

His longevity in the sport is phenomenal, having claimed 103 race victories, the most in F1 history.

Most of those have come with Mercedes, as have six of his seven world championships, since he shocked the F1 paddock by joining the then-underperforming Brackley-based team in 2013.

Hamilton's move to Ferrari confirmed

While the last two seasons have not seen the seven-time world champion be able to add to his tally of race wins due to poor car performance, it had been expected that Hamilton would stay with Mercedes until the end of his career.

However, this week's bombshell has blown that idea out of the water, with Wolff now left reflecting on what has been a brilliant 11 seasons together.

“In terms of a team-driver pairing, our relationship with Lewis has become the most successful the sport has seen, and that’s something we can look back on with pride; Lewis will always be an important part of Mercedes motorsport history," he told the official Mercedes website.

"However, we knew our partnership would come to a natural end at some point, and that day has now come. We accept Lewis’s decision to seek a fresh challenge, and our opportunities for the future are exciting to contemplate.

"But for now, we still have one season to go, and we are focused on going racing to deliver a strong 2024.”

READ MORE: What the 2025 F1 grid looks like after MASSIVE Hamilton move

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