Norbert Haug expresses confusion over Lewis Hamilton’s unexpected switch to Ferrari in 2025, terming it a profound mystery.
Norbert Haug, the former head of Mercedes F1 and Mercedes Motorsport, says the reason why Lewis Hamilton decided to switch to Ferrari for 2025 remains “a mystery” to him.
At the Aston Martin launch on Monday, former Ferrari driver Fernando Alonso mocked Hamilton’s reasoning that racing in red had always been the “childhood dream” of the 39-year-old Briton.
“It wasn’t his childhood dream 12 months ago, was it? Or two months ago, I suppose.”
Indeed, Haug admitted that no one in F1 was more surprised than he was when the bombshell news broke that Hamilton would be leaving Mercedes at the end of this year.
“If I had to bet on one thing, on a Formula 1 partnership that would last forever, it would have been Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes,” said Haug, who oversaw the early part of Hamilton’s career at McLaren Mercedes.
“I was completely blown away. I would have sworn it would remain that way forever. And that he would stay on after he finished driving as a brand ambassador or something.”
Haug believes the real reasons are still hidden.
“It’s a mystery. Very few people probably know. Toto Wolff knows or will know.”
However, it could be argued that Ferrari is also taking a risk by welcoming a driver who will be 40 years old at Maranello for 2025 and beyond.
“F1 demands a lot more effort at 40 than at 20,” Haug admits. “But there are many drivers in F1 who are physically fitter at 30 than at 20 because they understand the requirements and know how to nourish and train themselves. There has been so much progress in this area over the last decade. It’s not just the cars that have evolved, the drivers have too.”
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