Sir Lewis Hamilton feels that switching to Mercedes was the pivotal move of his career, as he believes staying with McLaren would have prevented him from winning any further World Championships.
Considering how Mercedes completely reshaped Formula 1, the conclusion seems simple, but Hamilton acknowledges that his 2008 success with McLaren was likely a solitary peak rather than the start of a trend.
Following a heartbreakingly close call in his rookie season, Hamilton finally won it all in a legendary finish at Interlagos. Yet, the subsequent four seasons were stagnant, as he consistently placed fourth or fifth in the overall standings.
His transition to Mercedes began with a fourth-place finish in 2013, which acted as a springboard for a dominant run of championships that only Nico Rosberg managed to disrupt in 2016.
Looking at McLaren's difficult trajectory after he left, Hamilton is certain that staying with the team would have left him without any additional titles.
During a video interview, Hamilton spoke fondly of McLaren, describing them as family since his early days at 13. While he felt secure there, he realized he was simply maintaining a legacy rather than building one, as the team was already established. Driven by a desire to apply everything he had learned to a new project, he moved to Mercedes—a team that, at the time, lacked a trophy cabinet. He wanted to be part of the ground-up process of building a powerhouse, a gamble that ultimately sent his career on an upward trajectory.
Hamilton also noted that the lessons he learned at McLaren were exactly what a struggling team needed. At the time, the move was viewed as a massive risk, and there were moments when he feared he might never win another title. Many critics even called it the biggest mistake of his professional life. However, the results speak for themselves: seven world titles with the Silver Arrows. Looking back, Hamilton concludes that had he played it safe at McLaren, he would likely still be a one-time champion after 14 years.
People commented it has the worst decision Hamilton could ever make in his career when he moved to Mercedes. But since then, he has won seven world titles with the Silver Arrows. Lewis Hamilton concluded by saying when thought in hindsight had he stayed he would be a one-time World Champion after 14 years.