21 of the funniest memes about Lewis Hamilton joining Ferrari

It could be the end of an era in Formula One. New rumours are heating up ahead of the 2024 F1 season that racing legend and seven-time World Drivers Championship winner Lewis Hamilton will depart Mercedes after over a decade with the elite racing unit to join rivals Ferrari.

In a statement, Hamilton said: “I have had an amazing 11 years with this team and I’m so proud of what we have achieved together. Mercedes has been part of my life since I was 13 years old. 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. I will be forever grateful for the incredible support of my Mercedes family, especially Toto (Wolff, Mercedes team principal) for his friendship and leadership and I want to finish on a high together.

“I am 100 per cent committed to delivering the best performance I can this season and making my last year with the Silver Arrows one to remember.”

In response Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff said Mercedes accepted Hamilton’s decision to leave.

“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 said.

“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.”

Following the Mercedes statement, Ferrari issued a one-line statement announcing Hamilton’s move.

Ferrari and Hamilton have an interesting past - and have often flirted with each other and a true driving relationship. Hamilton's instincts when Ferrari made contact in the past - rightly - told him to stick with McLaren and then Mercedes Benz to afford the best chance of success. Hamilton's decked-out trophy cabinet is proof of what he got right.

However, the tides are changing in F1 - quickly. Red Bull Racing and Max Verstappen have been dominant since a dramatic 2021 final day win in Abu Dhabi that saw the Dutchman leapfrog Hamilton and end his long reign at the top of F1. Rule changes have put the once-dominant Mercedes on the backfoot, and despite achieving a fairly respectable 3rd place finish in the final tally last season, it's clear that Hamilton is no longer betting on the Silver Arrows.

All this points to a dramatic 2024 season that will see Hamilton enjoy one last dance with Mercedes - a team he'd shown a lot of faith in - before departing to aim for the top with one of their biggest rivals. Drive to Survive might break the internet this time next year judging by the reactions online today:

Interestingly enough, a few years ago Hamilton seemed to show some regrets that his driving career had never taken him to Italy. Speaking to Sky Sports in 2021, Hamilton said "it's definitely going to be crazy to think that I never drove for Ferrari. Of course I look at the colour and the red, it's just... it's still the red," he added. "I have a couple of Ferraris at home, so I do get to drive a Ferrari, just not the one! For everyone that's a dream position to be in. It was just never really fully on the cards for me."

Well now, it seems like that dream move is on the cards.

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