Lewis Hamilton has revealed he was told his career was 'over' upon leaving McLaren for Mercedes back in 2012.
The F1 star won his first title with McLaren in 2008, with the Stevenage-born racer securing glory ahead of Felipe Massa.
He then opted to jump ship four years later, in a move that was widely scrutinised at the time.
In the end, the decision paid off with Hamilton winning six more titles with the Silver Arrows in the years that followed to establish himself as one of the best Formula One drivers of all time.
Lewis Hamilton has revealed he was told his career was 'over' upon leaving McLaren for Mercedes back in 2012.
REUTERS
Now, speaking to the Performance People podcast, Hamilton has shed light on the call to leave.
He says joining the Silver Arrows was the 'defining moment' of his career, with many quick to criticise his decision at the time.
Hamilton also claims he was told his career was 'over' - but he's happy to have proven the doubters wrong as he prepares to driver for Ferrari next year.
“It will probably have been when I decided to join Mercedes," he said.
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“I was in Thailand at the time, in between races after Singapore, and that’s when I made the decision.
“And I was like: ‘I want to take the leap of faith and I’m going to go with it, regardless of what people say.’
“Pretty much everyone told me to stay, but I went with my gut and my intuition and it was the best thing for me.
“I was with a championship-winning team. I was with McLaren, which had such a great history.
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“Obviously Mercedes used to own half of McLaren, and so it was partly their team, but then they broke away and bought their own team and as they were trying to ramp up, they weren’t having a lot of success.
“I think they were the fifth or sixth-best team at the time, so they were often finishing out of the top 10, struggling to get into the top 10.
“As a World Champion, people were like: ‘This is the worst decision you can make, this not a great team and your career is over.’
“All the pundits, all the media outlets, all the fans, everyone was like: ‘Career’s over.’
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Lewis Hamilton won his first F1 title with McLaren in 2008 before leaving for Mercedes four years later
PA
“And then it went well and everyone’s like: ‘Oh, it’s the best decision ever made.'”
Hamilton was then asked what made him ignore the advice to stay at McLaren.
He says his decision to join Mercedes was driven by a desire for a new challenge, while also saying he liked the risk factor at play.
“I think it was just really that I wanted a challenge at the time and I love taking risks. I always have," he said. “And also I never liked doing the same thing everyone expects of me, so that’s why I never did well at school.
Lewis Hamilton has built something special at Mercedes with six of his seven F1 titles coming during his time with the Silver Arrows
PA
“I meditated on it, I prayed on it, trying to think of what I wanted to do and I just loved the challenge.
“I thought that, where I was, I didn’t feel like I was being challenged enough.
“And going into a really uncomfortable position, getting out of your comfort zone, is what I love to do, because it’s nerve-wracking, but I love that feeling. That’s the feeling you get when you get in a Formula 1 car.
“But moving into a new team, people I didn’t know, having to get integrated, all the changes you need to make, and then the growth process of building it and evolving it and growing towards a common goal.
“Getting there is the greatest feeling when you do eventually do that.”
