Toto Wolff Says Lewis Hamilton Broke News Of Ferrari Move Over Coffee, Which Certainly Won't Make 2024 Awkward

Breakups are hard, especially if it comes after nearly 12 years together. And that's not just in romantic relationships, ending a Formula 1 driver-team relationship as long and fruitful as the one between Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes couldn't have been easy either.

Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff revealed how he received the news that the seven-time Formula 1 champion was trading the Silver Arrows for the Scuderia in one of the biggest driver moves in the sport's history.

It turns out, Lewis gave Toto and Mercedes the ol' "It's not you, it's me" over coffee.

According to Formula1.com, this meeting happened on Wednesday and was an annual meeting the two had before each season.

"We signed the contract with Lewis, we opted for a shorter term. And so the events are not a surprise, maybe the timing," Wolff said. 

Yeah, Lewis wanting a shorter deal would indicate that he might have plans beyond Mercedes. However, it was clear that even Wolff didn't expect this news now given Lewis had signed on through the 2025 season.

"So what happened is that we got together for coffee at my place in Oxford," Wolff said, adding that this was also when Hamilton returned to the team's factory in nearby Brackley over in the United Kingdom. 

"He said to me that he has decided to restore Ferrari in 2025. And that was basically it, and we had a good hour of conversation. And this is where we are."

Lewis Hamilton will compete in the 2024 Formula 1 season for Mercedes knowing he's jumping to one of the team's biggest rivals Ferrari. (Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports)

Could Things Get A Little Awkward In The Mercedes Garage This Season?

I mean… credit for to Lewis for breaking the news in person and not having a representative do it by email or text, but it could get awkward in the Mercedes garage this season.

Of course, this is by no means the first time a driver finished a season knowing he would be leaving at the end of the year. Hell, Carlos Sainz is doing that at Ferrari this season, and did the same thing at McLaren in 2020. It can be done harmoniously… but that still sounds incredibly awkward.

However, things appear cool… at least publicly. Wolff said that he doesn't hold a grudge against Lewis and even commended him for making such a difficult decision.

"I’ve found a friend, we’ve built a relationship over the last 10 years, and he faced a very, very difficult situation, (making) a decision of where to drive, maybe for the first time (in) 10 years without being able to brainstorm with me," Wolff said. "And therefore, I will always respect the difficulty of the situation that he faced. And in the future, we will discuss whether this could have been done in a different way or not. But I hold no grudge."

That's the diplomatic answer for sure. 

We haven't heard from Hamilton himself yet, but considering he's not getting any younger, he needs to put himself in a position to win a record-breaking eighth championship as soon as possible. 

So, the implication of the move is that he doesn't believe that that will be doable at Mercedes.

While Wolff may not hold a grudge, that still has to sting a little bit.