Lewis Hamilton’s upcoming transfer to Ferrari, according to Alex Albon, will have the same seismic impact on Formula 1 as Lionel Messi’s move to Inter Miami did in football.
After 11 years with Mercedes, Hamilton will leave the company at the conclusion of the next 2024 campaign. He is going to compete with Charles Leclerc at Ferrari, while the unfortunate Carlos Sainz is going to need a new F1 race seat somewhere.
The day of the January transfer deadline for football was entirely overshadowed by the announcement last Thursday. It brought back memories for Williams star Albon of the announcement that Messi would be joining David Beckham’s Miami-based team in the Major League Soccer.
And watching it happen, the British-Thai racer was just as shocked and thrilled as everyone else. “It’s excellent for the sport,” he told reporters. What a piece of news it was. Though that’s good for him—I believe he wants that change—I didn’t see it coming.
“Seeing Ferrari’s stock rise as much as it did and how people reacted to the news just goes to show you how huge Lewis is. It was definitely one of those “pinch yourself” moments for me.
“Is this a true tale? Over the winter, there were so many rumors circulating that it was difficult to determine which ones were true or false. Before it turned out to be true, the Ferrari one most definitely seemed like a rumor to me.
It just goes to demonstrate how hungry you are for Formula One and reminds me of the Messi to [Inter] Miami transfer on such a massive scale. It opens up and raises a lot of problems for the driver market as well.” James Vowles, Albon’s manager, was equally shocked by the announcement’s timing but unsurprised by Hamilton’s wish to relocate to Italy.
Vowles has worked with the seven-time world champion at Mercedes for many years, so he knows him well. However, Vowles believes that Hamilton’s departure will ultimately benefit his former team. “The timing surprised me,” he remarked. “Is it really his goal to drive a Ferrari at some time in his career? No. Because it’s a force of nature, I believe that the majority of world champions have either been there or have a desire to be there.
“That cannot be disregarded; it remains the most successful team in Formula 1; Williams is the second-most successful team in the sport. Every human being on the planet agrees that moving from a place of comfort to one of discomfort tests their mettle and is the hardest thing they have to accomplish.And that’s just Lewis.
In my opinion, the fact that he is doing it is beneficial for the sport. Lewis will benefit from it since he will push himself and learn from it. Although it won’t be good for Mercedes in the short run, I believe they will be just OK with where they end up with drivers and will recover stronger as a result. Thus, in the end, everything works out well.”
