Lewis Hamilton's shocking revelation of 'not wanting to come back' to racing after horrible F1 Brazilian GP race weekend
Following the conclusion of the 2024 Sao Paulo Grand Prix, Lewis Hamilton did not want to come back to racing, as per the British driver. He had a disastrous outing at Interlagos in November, which demotivated him gravely, and in the heat of the moment, he admitted that he no longer wanted to race.
Hamilton's woes started with Sprint qualifying where he failed to see himself through to SQ3. In the race, he could not do any better as he finished in the same place he started — P11. The Grand Prix qualifying and the race brought him more misery.
The seven-time world champion went out in Q1, which came as a huge shocker as he qualified in P16. However, he started the race from P14 after Max Verstappen and Carlos Sainz took grid penalties. In the end, Hamilton could only manage P10 and the solitary point in a Grand Prix weekend with Sprint and Race.
Following the race, Hamilton took to his team radio and implied that it could be his last time driving for Mercedes, and stated to Sky Sports F1 that he was looking for Christmas, which usually comes at the end of the season. However, ahead of the Las Vegas GP, Hamilton explained his statements from the Brazilian GP.
"I mean, in the moment that's how I felt, like I didn't really want to come back after that weekend,” Hamilton told the media. "But I think that's only natural. It's frustrating when you have a season like this, which I'm pretty sure I won't have again, or at least I'll work toward not having again."
"It wasn't a great feeling in that moment, but I'm here, I'm standing strong and I'm going to give it absolutely everything for these last few races.”
Lewis Hamilton will appear in three more races for Mercedes. The British driver agreed to sign a multi-million dollar contract with Ferrari earlier this season, which will see him part ways with Mercedes after 12 long years.
Lewis Hamilton responded to Toto Wolff's "shelf life" comment
In Matt Whyman’s book ‘Mercedes F1: Life in the Fast Lane’, Toto Wolff pointed at Lewis Hamilton and stated that everyone has a shelf life. He later clarified his comments and said that they were taken out of context. When asked to share his thoughts on these comments, Hamilton said:
“I don’t really have much, I spoke to Toto earlier. I have not seen the news if I’m honest up until this weekend, so I haven’t been keeping up to date with it. I think he’s clarified his point, and you know Toto has been massively supportive over the years so it doesn’t really make any bearing on.”
Lewis Hamilton will replace Williams-bound Carlos Sainz at Ferrari and race alongside Charles Leclerc. Mercedes, on the other hand, signed Kimi Antonelli as Hamilton's successor from the 2025 F1 season.