Lewis Hamilton’s “Selfish” Relationship With Toto Wolff Forced Ferrari Move, Claims Bernie Ecclestone

It’s safe to say that Lewis Hamilton was not happy at Mercedes and that’s the reason he left. Besides not getting a competitive car, there have been other factors because of which the 7-time world champion is leaving the team. Reports state that the Briton driver had some demands that Toto Wolff was not ready to meet, but Ferrari was. What was this demand you ask? It was to become the brand ambassador for Mercedes and earn a certain salary.

It’s said that when Toto Wolff denied Lewis Hamilton’s requests, the 7-time world champion started looking elsewhere. The way that Hamilton broke the news to Wolff was informally over breakfast and that is something many believe was wrong of him to do. Former F1 boss, Bernie Ecclestone, also believes that it was Hamilton who was “selfish” in the relationship with Mercedes.

Bernie Ecclestone’s take on Lewis Hamilton leaving Mercedes to go to Ferrari

The transfer of Lewis Hamilton is something that everyone in the F1 community is talking about. While many are happy to see this change, some believe that Hamilton betrayed Toto Wolff and the team. This includes former F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone.

According to Soymotor, Ecclestone questioned Hamilton and Wolff’s relationship saying, “Toto has trusted him much more, and they have become close for selfish reasons, both of them.” He further explained, “I don’t think there has ever been a relationship in which you could trust in both parties. Obviously, there wasn’t because that’s why he (Hamilton) decided to leave suddenly.” 

Bernie believes, “It was a strange, strange move to make,” and this was mostly due to the timing of the announcement. “Big surprise, to the extent that I didn’t understand why he did it, given the year’s notice basically. Why didn’t he wait until the end of the season?”

Answering his own question, Ecclestone said, “People thought they had done a good deal with him, but I think it’s a bit of a matter of ego that he – Hamilton – got hooked on everything.” However, ultimately, Lewis Hamilton and Ferrari, both the concerned parties are getting what they want.

Lewis Hamilton and Ferrari in a Win-Win situation

With Ferrari, Lewis Hamilton gets a car that is more likely to perform better than a Mercedes, along with the deal that makes him his money. On the other hand, the Prancing Horses get one of the best drivers the world has ever seen. Ecclestone further talked about the transfer and explained his take on Ferrari’s reasons for bringing in Hamilton.

Ecclestone stated, “Vasseur knew him from his early days, and I think John Elkann at Ferrari, from his point of view, was a bit of a matter of ego who managed to capture one of the main drivers of Formula 1.” With this, he reveals that for Ferrari it was all about acquiring the best driver on the grid, and that was Hamilton, even if it were to cost half a billion dollars.

That being said, do you think Lewis Hamilton moving to Ferrari was a good move? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.