From breakthrough victories to jaw-dropping comebacks – Hamilton's top 10 greatest moments for Mercedes

After 246 appearances across 12 years, Lewis Hamilton brought the curtain down on his Mercedes career at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, with the seven-time world champion saying an emotional goodbye as he prepares to depart for Ferrari in 2025.

The partnership between Hamilton and the Silver Arrows has been one of the most successful in the sport’s history, bringing with it some record-breaking accolades and standout performances.

It seems only fitting, then, to take a trip down memory lane to relive 10 of the best moments from Hamilton’s time with the Brackley-based outfit…

PALMER: Hamilton’s battling Abu Dhabi drive was a fine farewell to Mercedes – and a promising prelude to his Ferrari move

First win for Mercedes, 2013 Hungarian Grand Prix

Hamilton’s decision to move from McLaren – the team that had nurtured his junior career and with whom he had won his first F1 world championship in 2008 – for Mercedes in 2013 came as a surprise to many, with the Silver Arrows having claimed just one win since returning to the sport in 2010.

But Hamilton silenced any doubters by taking his debut victory for the squad at the Hungarian Grand Prix. After starting from pole position, the Briton lost the lead during the first pit stops but went on to perform some impressive overtakes on the Red Bull of Mark Webber to get himself back into P1 and clinch the first of his 84 wins for the team.

Epic battle with Rosberg, 2014 Bahrain Grand Prix

The 2014 campaign was where things truly took off for Hamilton and Mercedes, the squad having bettered the rest of the field in mastering the sport’s new technical regulations amid the introduction of turbo-hybrid power units. With the outfit seemingly in a league of their own, this kickstarted a fierce intra-team rivalry between Hamilton and team mate Nico Rosberg.

Early signs of this were apparent at Round 3 in Bahrain. Hamilton overtook pole-sitter Rosberg for P1 off the line and later built up a lead over the German – before this was lost when the Safety Car was deployed. What followed after the restart was a thrilling fight between the pair that went right down to the chequered flag, with Hamilton ultimately holding on to take the win.

BEYOND THE GRID: Wolff, Shovlin and the Mercedes team share their stories of working with Hamilton

Debut championship for Mercedes, 2014 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix

That battle between Hamilton and Rosberg continued throughout 2014, meaning that the title would be decided at the season finale in Abu Dhabi. While the odds were in Hamilton’s favour – given his lead of 16 points – Rosberg was still in contention and bolstered his chances further by taking pole position.

However, after Hamilton took an early lead, Rosberg’s championship prospects took another dent when his car began to experience an Energy Recovery System failure, causing him to drop down the order. While concerns remained over whether Hamilton’s W05 could suffer the same fate, the Briton made it to the finish line to not only win the race but also become the world champion.

READ MORE: 10 years on from the start of Mercedes’ dominance – How did their pre-season testing pan out?

Claiming a Silverstone hat-trick, 2016 British Grand Prix

While Hamilton went on to score another title in 2015, the 2016 season saw an even closer duel unfold with Rosberg, the German having claimed five wins in the first nine races compared to Hamilton’s three.

But when Round 10 arrived at Silverstone, Hamilton took pole position and went on to showcase his skills in changing weather conditions during a challenging wet-dry race. Taking the chequered flag by 8.25s from second-placed Max Verstappen, the victory was the Mercedes driver’s third in a row at the British Grand Prix, making him the first driver to score a Silverstone hat-trick since Jim Clark in the 1960s.

READ MORE: From spectacularly mastering the rain to crossing the line on three wheels – Ranking Hamilton’s nine Silverstone race wins

A stunning pole position, 2018 Singapore Grand Prix

When F1 arrived at the Marina Bay Street Circuit in 2018, Hamilton did not trouble the top of the leaderboard during any practice session, with this honour instead going to Red Bull and Ferrari. This all seemed to suggest that Mercedes were not the favourites heading into qualifying.

Fast forward to the closing stages of Q3 and Hamilton was setting purple sectors on his first flying effort. In what some have hailed as one of the best laps of his career, the British driver crossed the line with a time of 1m 36.015s – over three seconds up on Sebastian Vettel's pole time from 2017.

MUST-SEE: Listen in to Hamilton's emotional radio as he crosses the line in his final race for Mercedes

Paying tribute to Niki Lauda, 2019 Monaco Grand Prix

There were shadows of what was to come during the Monaco Grand Prix in 2019, a race in which Hamilton started from pole but faced a close challenge from future title rival Verstappen throughout much of the event.

As Hamilton desperately tried to defend against the Red Bull – with the pair also making contact along the way – the fight continued until the final lap, where Hamilton ultimately took a hard-earned victory. Sporting a red helmet in tribute to Niki Lauda following the passing of the legendary driver a few days before the race, the Briton stated that he had been channelling the “spirit of Niki” in the race.

READ MORE: ‘It was pretty special’ – Mercedes reveal message that ‘emotional’ Hamilton wrote for Antonelli on driver room wall

Winning at home on three wheels, 2020 British Grand Prix

During a shortened season owing to the Covid pandemic, F1’s visit to Silverstone in 2020 played out without any spectators in the crowd – but had fans been able to attend, there would undoubtedly have been a huge reaction during what was one of the most dramatic endings to a race in recent memory.

Hamilton looked on course to add to his tally of wins at his home event – only for the left-front tyre on his Mercedes to let go on the final lap, just as Verstappen was closing the gap in P2 on fresh rubber. Incredibly, Hamilton managed to limp around the track – essentially on three wheels – and hold enough of a margin over Verstappen to seal an unforgettable victory.

WATCH: Hamilton treats race engineer ‘Bono’ to a hot lap ahead of their last Grand Prix together

Claiming title number seven, 2020 Turkish Grand Prix

Hamilton’s time with Mercedes has seen him surpass various records along the way – but perhaps one of the most emotional achievements came when he became only the second driver to win seven world championships.

Despite starting from P6 on the grid for the 2020 Turkish Grand Prix, Hamilton put in a masterful drive amid tricky weather conditions to make his way through to P1 and equal Michael Schumacher’s record of seven titles in the process, leaving the Silver Arrows driver in tears as he completed his cooldown lap.

READ MORE: The four-time world champions Verstappen joins in the all-time list – and those still left ahead of him

From the back of the grid to first place, 2021 Sao Paulo Grand Prix

F1’s visit to Sao Paulo in 2021 – a season famed for a tense title fight between Hamilton and Verstappen – proved to be highly eventful for the former. After being disqualified from qualifying due to a technical infringement on his rear wing, the world champion started the Sprint from the back of the grid.

From there Hamilton sliced his way through the field, pulling off an impressive 15 overtakes to end the event in P5. This only continued on race day, where the Briton lined up in P10 following a five-place grid penalty but once again got his elbows out to surge ahead and take a stunning win.

MUST-SEE: Ride along with Hamilton as he drives Senna’s title-winning McLaren

Return to winning ways after three years, 2024 British Grand Prix

After all of those years of success, the Hamilton and Mercedes winning streak came to a halt in 2022 amid the introduction of new ground effect regulations in the sport. The season proved to be a tough one for the squad, with their sole triumph coming courtesy of George Russell in Brazil.

It was much the same story in 2023 – where the team failed to win a race – and Hamilton entered 2024 having not stood on the top step of the podium since the 2021 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix. But the seven-time champion was in dazzling form in front of his home crowd at Silverstone, leading to his first victory in 945 days in what was perhaps the most emotional of his wins to date.

READ MORE: How 945 days of blood, sweat and tears paid off in Hamilton’s statement Silverstone victory

DISCOVER MORE...

‘Ferrari is completely different, but the target is the same’ – Vasseur on how Hamilton will handle his Maranello move

All the 2025 F1 driver numbers confirmed in full

Who is Andy Cowell? All you need to know about Aston Martin’s new F1 team boss

From world champions to super-subs – How Ferrari’s other British drivers fared as Hamilton makes his move

5 things to be excited about as F1 gears up for the 2025 season