52-year-old would have been left so ‘hurt’ by Lewis Hamilton to Ferrari move

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Lewis Hamilton must have ‘hurt’ Mercedes boss Totto Wolff by moving to rivals Ferrari, BBC F1 reporter Andrew Benson says.

It was confirmed last month that Hamilton would be departing the Silver Arrows for the Scuderia in 2025, replacing Carlos Sainz.

And Benson feels that the seven-time champion’s decision to reunite with Fred Vasseur in Maranello will be a personal blow to Wolff.

Vasseur, now the team principal at Ferrari, worked with Hamilton in both Formula 3 and GP2 before both graduated into F1.

Hamilton joined Mercedes in 2013 after leaving McLaren, and went on to win six world championships with the Brackley outfit.

Wolff was an executive director at the team when Hamilton arrived, but took on greater responsibility following the exit of Ross Brawn.

Andrew Benson says Lewis Hamilton may have upset Toto Wolff

Writing in Q&A for BBC Sport, Benson explained that Vasseur was ‘key’ in Hamilton’s decision to jump ship.

The 39-year-old is a big admirer of the Frenchman after their successful partnership in the mid-noughties.

And Benson believes ‘that must hurt’ for Wolff, who appeared to have ‘carved out such a close relationship’ with Hamilton over the years at Mercedes.

Ferrari also offered the British driver a longer-term deal and a higher salary, which played a part in his move.

Wolff must now find Hamilton replacement

For Mercedes, attention has already turned to delivering a successor for Hamilton ahead of next season.

The ‘hottest candidate’ right now is Max Verstappen, and he’s also the number one option in the eyes of Wolff.

Sainz is also available, of course, but Damon Hill is concerned by the optics of hiring a driver who’s been cast aside by Ferrari.

17-year-old academy driver Andrea Kimi Antonelli has also been mentioned as a bold option, though David Croft reckons he could first join Williams for a couple of years.