Lewis Hamilton hints at exact F1 retirement date ahead of Ferrari debut

Lewis Hamilton

Lewis Hamilton hints at exact F1 retirement date

Lewis Hamilton is a seven-time champion of the sport

Sam Cook Digital Journalist

Sports Journalist who has been covering motorsport since 2023

Monday 10 March 2025 08:12

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Seven-time Formula 1 world champion Lewis Hamilton has issued an update on when he plans to retire.

Hamilton is largely considered to be one of the greatest drivers to have ever raced in the sport, and holds the all-time records for the number of race victories, pole positions and podiums, as well as the joint record for the number of championships.

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The Brit is hoping to go one better and break Michael Schumacher's record before his career is over, and has made the switch from Mercedes to Ferrari in order to try and achieve that eighth title.

However, Hamilton is now 40 years of age, and question marks remain about whether he can propel himself back to the kind of form that saw him finish third in the drivers' championship in 2023 despite having an inconsistent Mercedes car.

Lewis Hamilton is a seven-time Formula 1 world champion

When will Lewis Hamilton retire?

Hamilton's 2024 season saw him reach the lowest position he has ever finished in the drivers' championship, seventh, and he was thrashed by team-mate George Russell in qualifying sessions.

That season led to a rather downbeat attitude from Hamilton, even proclaiming near the end of the season that he's 'just not fast anymore'.

Since his move to Ferrari in January, Hamilton has been reinvigorated and said at pre-season testing in Bahrain that it was the most positive he had felt in a long time, prepared for another championship bid.

Due to his age and dismal 2024 season, there have been suggestions that Hamilton will struggle to get the better of supremely talented team-mate Charles Leclerc, but now the seven-time champion has suggested he's not in any rush to claim title number eight. But did suggest a certain milestone date for when he would call it quits.

Speaking about his long-term future, Hamilton told Time: "The old man is a state of mind. Of course your body ages. But I’m never going to be an old man.

"What I can tell you is, retirement is nowhere on my radar. I could be here until I’m 50, who knows."