Lewis Hamilton is set to compete in his final race with Mercedes at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix this weekend as the seven-time World Champion bids farewell to the team that shot him to the top.
Hamilton, who won six of his championship titles with the Silver Arrows, departs after a 12-year journey, during which he won 84 races for the team and help it secure eight Constructors’ Championships.
But the Briton started his iconic Formula One career elsewhere, in the garage of McLaren back in 2007. Racing with the team for six seasons, Hamilton proved to be a consistent challenger for victories.
In his debut season with the Mercedes-powered unit, Hamilton finished on the podium in his very first Grand Prix, broke several rookie records, announcing his arrival with a solid second-place finish in the standings.
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Undoubtedly, his best year with McLaren was in 2008 when he won his maiden drivers’ title, edging Felipe Massa by one point. In only his second season, he finished with 10 podium-finishes including five race wins.
But the four years that followed saw a dip in his pace, as he failed to break into the top 3. In 2012, his final year with the team, Hamilton saw an uptick in performance and secured four wins but wasn’t pleased with the results.
He struggled in his McLaren that could not match the likes of Ferrari and Red Bull, while its engine supplier Mercedes joined the grid as a factory team.
At the end of his McLaren contract, he chose to take a leap of faith and made the switch to Mercedes in 2013 and the rest is history.
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