SUMMARY
- Carlo Vanizini compares Lewis Hamilton's move from Mercedes to Cristiano Ronaldo's move from Real Madrid.
- Lewis has signed a contract to drive for Ferrari in 2025 despite already having a contract with Mercedes for 2025.
There is no doubt that Lewis Hamilton has made headlines with his move from Mercedes to Ferrari shocked the entire world. This is a move that no one saw coming. However, it has happened. The news has taken over the internet and will continue to make headlines until the season starts.
Lewis has spent 11 years with the team and will continue to spend his 12th year this season. The entire world thought he would retire before joining another team. Given this fact, Italian F1 pundit, Carlo Vanzini has said that this move is similar to the one made by Cristiano Ronaldo back in 2018.
Lewis Hamilton’s move to Ferrari similar to Cristiano Ronaldo’s move from Madrid
Back in 2009, Ronaldo left Manchester United to join Real Madrid. This was considered to be one of the biggest moves in Soccer history. The Portuguese soccer player found a lot of success in Madrid. He went on to have some of his finest goals while winning 2 league cups and the Champions League 4 times.
Given the success Ronaldo had with the team, everyone thought that he would spend the rest of his career with the team. However, in 2018, he decided to switch teams and head to Juventus. This was again considered to be one of the biggest moves in Soccer history.
“It’s the same situation as Ronaldo to Juventus – all people are crazy” đź‘‘
Sky Italy’s Carlo Vanzini gives the view from Italy with Lewis Hamilton set to join Ferrari in 2025 🟢⚪🔴 pic.twitter.com/Q6jOUdjAZU
— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) February 1, 2024
Lewis Hamilton’s move to Ferrari is definitely one of the biggest moves in sports. Back in 2023, Hamilton announced that he would be staying with Mercedes until the end of the 2025 season at least. However, seems as though he was not satisfied with the progress the team was making to build a strong car.
Reports suggest that Hamilton was not happy with the W15’s performance before the 2024 season. This prompted him to reach out to Ferrari who had an empty seat alongside Charles Leclerc.
It has been reported that the plan has been going on for weeks. Ferrari used this information to convince Charles to sign the contract extension. It is said that Hamilton signed with Ferrari on Wednesday. He then got on the phone with Toto to break the news to him. Toto must have been surprised at first, but he seems to have accepted the fact.
Did Lewis Hamilton break his Mercedes F1 contract to join Ferrari?
Although Lewis Hamilton did have a contract with Mercedes to drive until the 2025 season. Mercedes announced that the British driver has activated a release clause that was put in his contract. The details of the release clause are not available at the moment. However, it is speculated that Hamilton or Ferrari will have to pay a small fee to Mercedes to activate this release clause.
Soon after the official announcement from Mercedes, Ferrari announced that Lewis had signed a multi-year contract to drive for them. This means we will see him wear the red outfit at least until the end of the 2026 season.
Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team and Lewis Hamilton will part ways at the end of the 2024 season. Lewis has activated a release option in the contract announced last year.
— Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team (@MercedesAMGF1) February 1, 2024
Hamilton joining Ferrari will now create chaos as the silly season begins. This leaves an empty seat at Mercedes. As it stands, Alex Albon is one of the favorites to replace Hamilton. However, there is Carlos Sainz, Fernando Alonso, and a few other drivers who will be in contention for this seat.
No matter what happens, one thing is for sure. The upcoming silly season is going to be chaos. We can’t wait to see who will drive for whom for the 2025 season. Who do you think should drive for Mercedes in 2025? Post your answers in the comments section below.