When news of Lewis Hamilton moving to Ferrari in 2025 was announced last February, it shocked the whole world. After he had been at Mercedes for over a decade, the general belief was that the seven-time world champion would close out his Formula 1 career with the Silver Arrows, especially with the progress they have made ahead of the 2026 regulation overhaul.
Ever since, there has been much talk about whether or not this was the right move for Hamilton. Ferrari have shown their competitiveness in the last few seasons but have also endured several mishaps that were avoidable, at times making them the laughingstock of Formula 1.
Though Mercedes have been on a downward trend since 2022, the move to Ferrari amid consistent race strategy issues made fans wonder if Hamilton truly believed he could win an eighth world championship at the Maranello-based team.
The British driver’s move draws comparisons to two shocking NFL quarterback moves.
Over the last few NFL seasons, the quarterback scene in the NFL took quite a turn, with some reputable players leaving their long-time teams.
Having spent the first 20 seasons of his career with the New England Patriots, Tom Brady opted not to retire in 2020 and joined the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for another three years. Aaron Rodgers made a similar move, having spent 18 years with the Green Bay Packers before making the move to the New York Jets in 2023.
These two Super Bowl champions and future Hall of Famers made similar moves later in their careers, and things turned out very differently.
Brady joined the Buccaneers, and it ended with glory. At the age of 43, he won a seventh Super Bowl to cap off his first season with the team in 2021.
As for Rodgers, his run with the Jets ended up being a very unpleasant tenure. After he only played a few snaps in 2023 due to an opening week Achilles tear, he returned in 2024. But the team went 5-12, and they recently officially announced that they were moving on from the 41-year-old.
Given Hamilton’s performance during his final few seasons at Mercedes, it could go either way. His Ferrari tenure could end up like Tom Brady's with Tampa Bay, where he wins another world championship, or it could end up like Aaron Rodgers' with New York, where things just do not work out and it leads to a painful breakup.
The 40-year-old Briton has endured a wide variety of situations over the past few years. He is still very quick in a good car, which he displayed in Las Vegas, Silverstone, and Spa in 2024. However, he has openly admitted to losing touch in some areas, with qualifying having become one of his weaknesses, even as the all-time pole record holder.
The 2024 season was by far his worst-ever qualifying season. He posted an average grid position of 8.83, a figure that has not been so high since it was 9.29 during his third season with McLaren.
Nevertheless, Hamilton has a fairly tough task ahead of him as he looks to get back to where he was before the 2022 season. The vast majority of the motorsport world has his back and wants to see the seven-time world champion win an eighth.