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Lewis Hamilton said goodbye to him his now former team Mercedes as he prepares to join Ferrari ahead of the next F1 season.
Hamilton rocked the racing world when he announced ahead of the 2024 season that the coming year would be his final with the team with which he has won six of his seven world championships.
His move was a major subplot of the season, which ended in Abu Dhabi last weekend, where the 39-year-old worked his way through the grid to finish fourthright in front of a teammate George Russell.
He cut an emotional figure as he waved goodbye to the Mercedes team at the race and the farewells continued in the week after, ending on Friday at Brackley.
The headquarters of the Mercedes team, officially called the Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team, is based in the West Northamptonshire town, and Hamilton and other team officials were there this week.
The team leader joined the scene Toto Wolff and Russell, Hamilton took to the microphone to thank those present at Mercedes headquarters to thank all the hard work of the team behind the scenes throughout his time with the manufacturer.
Lewis Hamilton has waved an emotional goodbye to Mercedes as he prepares to join Ferrari
He drove his last race in Abu Dhabi last weekend – winning a total of 84 for Mercedes
Reports suggest the 39-year-old had Italian lessons ahead of the move
“You know I’m leaving, (but) you guys are going to go and have a lot more success going forward because this is an amazing group of people,” he said. “There is so much talent and so much passion here.
“Anyone would be lucky to work with you. I hope when I eventually stop racing I can come back and visit you all and I know we can always look back on these fond memories, what a trip.
“There is no driver in the world who has had that experience with the team, and that makes it much more difficult to leave him. But I carry with me the greatest memories. You guys are living in my dream and I hope I’ve lived part of your dreams too.
“So a huge, huge thank you from the bottom of my heart and also my family thanks you for all the dedication over all these years, so a big thank you to everyone and God bless you.”
He also took to Instagram to share several images from the day, which included a group photo, all six of his world championship-winning cars lined up and an open-top drive.
The caption read: “This is for real. After Abu Dhabi, after Kuala Lumpur and after Stuttgart, it all ends here. This is my home. To the thousands of people who work in Brackley and Brixworth, you have been friends and teammates and I can’t thank you enough for all your hard work and support. It was real.
Also at the farewell were all of Hamilton’s trophies throughout his time with the team. He won a total of 84 races in a Mercedes car.
He was tearful as he left the factory for the last time, cheered on by workers and what appeared to be some fans, as a large firework display went off as evening fell.
He cut an emotional figure as he left the Mercedes factory in Brackley for the last time
He will join and partner Charles Leclerc (pictured) as he wears red from next season
Hamilton will join Ferrari on a £40m-a-year deal before next year, swapping the white and black for red in a look fans will have to get used to.
According to Gazzetta dello Sportmeanwhile, Hamilton is taking Italian lessons ahead of 2025, which is believed to help him acclimatise to the team.
As he leaves one team, he will look to develop a strong working relationship with the Maranello-based Ferrari group, which is in the province of Modena and in Italy’s Emilia-Romagna region.
He will be Charles Leclerc’s new teammate, replacing Carlos Sainz as rookie Kimi Antonelli takes his place at the Silver Arrows.
