F1 | This is how Hamilton dropped the Ferrari bomb on Mercedes

It was the opportunity for the two to manage what happened in the previous season, retrace the developments of the winter and talk about the objectives and ambitions in view of the new championship, with all its challenges.

For the two, it has often been the perfect opportunity to spend a lot of time together, to better understand each other's mentality and to fine-tune everything for the season that awaited them. Speaking previously about the value of these meetings, Wolff said: “I think the end of the season is a good time, where you can put everything on the table, some of the frustrations and undiscussed topics, and reflect on them, analyze them and agree or find out what actually happened.”

The annual meeting was scheduled for this Wednesday at Wolff's home in Oxford, while Hamilton had traveled to Brackley the previous day to carry out the seat on his 2024 car.

From Wolff's point of view, there was every reason to think that this would be the opportunity to put a stop to the team's difficulties in the last two seasons and prepare for what was hoped to be a renewed competitive boost thanks to the new W15, a car that gave good indications to the simulator according to the Team Principal.

But things did not go as expected and, on the contrary, the focus of the meeting was the announcement of the bombshell news by Hamilton, who explained that he wanted to activate the exit clause from his contract and that he had signed for the Ferrari in 2025.

Almost simultaneously, Marc Hynes, Hamilton's long-time confidant who recently returned to play a more active role in the management of the seven-time champion, arrived at the Mercedes factory in Brackley to deliver a formal letter to the team, in order to formally inform them of the situation .

Hamilton's departure was now official and, despite the shock, the news began to be handled before public confirmation on Thursday evening. While it has been suggested that the January 31 date could be significant as the last day for Hamilton to activate his options, it is clear that this was not the case.

Instead, events only unfolded this week because it appears Hamilton wanted to inform Wolff face-to-face at the first opportunity, rather than with a phone call or through lawyers.

Let's not forget that when Nico Rosberg told Wolff that he would retire after winning the 2016 championship, he failed to do so in person and did so with a phone call at the airport after they had spent hours together on their way back to Europe.

Clarifying things before the start of the season also made a lot of sense for Hamilton, who wanted to get the news out of the way as soon as possible. If he had kept the deal with Ferrari under wraps, knowing that rumors would inevitably spread, he would have risked turning it into a media frenzy that could have distracted both him and Mercedes during the season, given that the deal had already been found.

Carlos Sainz, Scuderia Ferrari, Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes-AMG, speak after the race

Photo by: Sam Bloxham / Motorsport Images

While rumors linking Hamilton to Ferrari had been circulating for some time, which had previously failed, in this case the new partnership would also surprise Mercedes.

When the first rumors about Hamilton's departure emerged, it was inevitable to think that perhaps things had been brewing for some time and that Mercedes was trying to organize everything to make its driver happy.

The recent contract extension announcements of Wolff and technical director James Allison were perhaps a sign that the team was keen to impress on Hamilton that there was long-term stability at the management level.

However, the Wolff and Allison developments are believed to have nothing to do with Hamilton, especially as there had been no indication of his possible departure at the time. There was also no behind-the-scenes issue that triggered Hamilton's desire to leave, nor any concern about the progress of the W15 project, which offered some encouraging signs from the simulator.

Instead, as Hamilton confirmed in the Mercedes press release, it was simply the right time to change scenery and focus on a new challenge. With Wolff and the Mercedes brass aware of the significance of Hamilton's decision, it was logical for the team to move quickly to make things right for the team and the public.

The Mercedes factory

Photo credit: Mercedes AMG

Wolff called a meeting at the Brackley factory for 2pm on Thursday, which all team members were invited to attend, to explain what was happening.

And it was here, via video link because he was in Milan for a meeting of the Mercedes engineering team with Pirelli, that Wolff announced that Hamilton would leave the team at the end of the season.

At this point, the news had already practically leaked out, before both teams made their announcements around 8pm on Thursday evening: first the farewell to Mercedes was confirmed, then the engagement with Ferrari.

Hamilton's move to Cavallino is one of the biggest shock stories in F1 for years and has kicked off one of the most interesting and frenetic news days of recent times.