Former F1 team boss Eddie Jordan has revealed how he worked in tandem with Niki Lauda to persuade Lewis Hamilton to leave McLaren for Mercedes at the end of the 2012 season.

Hamilton announced earlier this year that he will join Ferrari on a multi-year contract from the F1 2025 season, ending his long and successful association with Mercedes.

Eddie Jordan reveals surprise role in Lewis Hamilton to Mercedes switch

The British driver claimed six of his joint-record seven World Championships, as well as becoming the first man in history to surpass 100 grand prix wins and pole positions, with Mercedes between 2013 and this year.

The German manufacturer also has the distinction of providing the engines for each of Hamilton’s 356 starts to date, stretching back to his debut season with McLaren in 2007.

Hamilton’s only previous team switch came at the end of the 2012 season, when he left McLaren to replace the retiring Michael Schumacher at Mercedes and lay the foundations for the most successful team/driver partnership in F1 history.

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Niki Lauda, the late three-time World Champion who served as non-executive chairman at Mercedes from 2012 until his death in May 2019, is widely credited for his role in persuading Hamilton to leave McLaren.

Lauda famously visited Hamilton’s hotel room during the 2012 Singapore Grand Prix weekend to convince the British driver to join Mercedes, with the move announced days later after Hamilton had retired with a mechanical problem while leading.

Jordan, working as a pundit for BBC television at the time, revealed at the Italian Grand Prix weeks earlier that Hamilton’s move to Mercedes was “imminent” after both parties had agreed personal terms.

And the Irishman has finally revealed how he had such intricate knowledge of the situation, with Jordan himself playing a role in Hamilton’s move.

Appearing on the Formula For Success podcast, Jordan revealed that he would visit Hamilton in McLaren’s hospitality unit in the paddock to negotiate on Lauda’s behalf.

He said: “Niki Lauda used to push me into McLaren to go and speak to Lewis, to do all the little messaging for him, because he couldn’t do it because of the connection [with Mercedes]. He was so strongly involved with Mercedes.”

Jordan’s latest revelation comes after it emerged earlier this year that he had played an instrumental role in Adrian Newey’s transfer from Red Bull to Aston Martin, having acted as the F1 design legend’s manager during negotiations.

Jordan’s interference crucially allowed Newey to sidestep the extended period of gardening leave commonplace in F1 staff contracts, with Newey set to begin work at Aston Martin soon after he officially departs Red Bull at the end of March next year.

It means Newey, 65, is poised to play a pivotal role in Aston Martin’s preparations for F1’s new technical regulations scheduled for 2026, potentially giving the Silverstone-based outfit a major competitive boost.

Jordan, who was recently linked with an ambitious bid for rugby union club London Irish, announced this week that he has been battling an “aggressive” form of cancer.

The 76-year-old revealed he was diagnosed with bladder and prostate cancer, which spread to his spine and pelvis, in the spring.

“I was diagnosed with bladder and prostate cancer, and then it spread into the spine and the pelvis, so it was quite aggressive.

“And we’ve all heard about our wonderful friend, Sir Chris Hoy, who’s an absolute megastar, and coming out and talking about illnesses such like what I’ve gotten, but he’s a far younger man.

“But this is a little message, and everybody listen to this: Don’t waste or put it off. Go and get tested, because in life, you’ve got chances. And there is so much medical advice out there and so many things that you can do to extend your lifetime.

“Go and do it. Don’t be stupid. Don’t be shy. It’s not a shy thing. Look after your body, guys.

“We’ll move on, but yes, some very dark days in there – but we pulled out of it, thankfully.”

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