Lewis Hamilton would have wanted to end his final race with Mercedes on the podium at least, but he produced a ‘world champion’ performance from his lowly grid position.
That was the opinion of team principal Toto Wolff over the team radio at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix which saw Lewis Hamilton start P16 after a very unfortunate exit from qualifying when a bollard got stuck under his car.
Hamilton had the pace to compete for a spot on the front three rows of the grid but instead had to prepare for a fight through the field.
Starting on the hard tyre, Hamilton and future Ferrari teammate Charles Leclerc managed to carve their way through the field.
The pair were eighth and 12th by the end of the first lap, with Hamilton making up seven places after witnessing both Red Bulls spin and taking Oscar Piastri and Valtteri Bottas out with them.
On the alternate strategy, Hamilton had to bide his time but it paid off in the end.
Soon he was on the medium tyres and with everyone’s hard tyres graining around him, he was able to make amazing progress.
Karun Chandhok was watching the race and on X, shared one moment from Hamilton in particular that he loved.
It summed up why he’s been as successful as he has and will give Ferrari plenty of confidence that he’s got more performance to deliver in their iconic red cars next year.
Karun Chandhok loved Lewis Hamilton’s move on George Russell at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix
Posting on social media after the race, Chandhok said: “I love seeing the overtaking at the banked turn 9….. Great move from Lewis on the last lap!
“The team at @DrivenInt and I spent so many weeks redesigning the track in 2021 and creating that signature corner – take a bit of personal pride when we see the cool racing there!”
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Hamilton was described as a legend by Russell after the race but won’t want to see the seven-time world champion pull off that move again in the future.
Russell is going to be under a lot more pressure next year to deliver the kinds of performances that Mercedes became accustomed to when Hamilton was leading the team.
The wildcard that is Kimi Antonelli still looms in the background as well and it’s yet to be seen how much of a threat he’ll be to Russell finally leading a top F1 team.
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Hamilton now has three months to prepare for pre-season testing at a team not powered by a Mercedes engine for the first time in his career.
Mercedes denied Hamilton a post-season test with Ferrari but it won’t be long before he’s running in the team’s simulator or a private TPC session.
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After the race, Hamilton sent an emotional message to Mercedes, and he has to build up relationships that have been built up over a decade with the Brackley-based once again in Maranello.
The pressure cooker environment of Ferrari and the Italian press are unlikely to faze Hamilton given what he’s dealt with in the past.
However, it’s going to be a complete culture change which may do him some good after some difficult campaigns.
