Lewis Hamilton warned of “transition”: ‘Mercedes won’t invite him to meetings’

Lewis Hamilton will experience a transition this year where Mercedes won’t want to share information with their outgoing driver, Martin Brundle believes.

Hamilton will spend one final season at Mercedes - the team where he has won six of his joint-record seven F1 championships - before going to Ferrari in 2025.

Toto Wolff’s team will eventually slow down the feed of knowledge to Hamilton as his days at Mercedes become numbered, Brundle warned.

“You’ve got this transition point where Lewis will stop being invited to meetings,” the Sky Sports expert said.

“He won’t understand what’s going on with development of the car and in the simulator.

“The team consciously, subconsciously, will favour George.

“They have got to.”

Mercedes team principal Wolff has already insisted that he does worry about Hamilton’s ‘integrity’ in terms of taking secrets to Ferrari next year.

Asked what type of knowledge Hamilton could feasibly bring with him to Italy, Brundle explained: “Processes, philosophies, how the car works, what he likes, how he likes to sit, what he needs from a car to maximise his talent.

“He’s got to integrate. That’s hard. He won’t speak the language or know the team like Charles Leclerc does.

“You need to find out where all the buttons are to press.

“That’s why Lewis, I think, will want to try to take a few people with him.

“But there will be non-compete clauses so he can’t do that.

“You want to take some of your own gang with you, when you go. So you can hit the ground running.”

Brundle added about Hamilton: “I have no doubt that he will give it everything he’s got until the last lap of the last race.

“If everybody is smart - and I think they are - they will see it as a farewell tour.

“They’ll wish him farewell then hope he loses in a  Ferrari!”

Simon Lazenby was asked about the possible awkwardness of Hamilton spending an entire year at Mercedes with everybody knowing he is Ferrari-bound.

“The thing with Lewis, it’s an exceptional case,” Lazenby said. “It’s Lewis!

“He brought everything to Mercedes. They kind of do owe him.

“I think they owe him everything. They probably owe him the respect to treat him like the great champion that he is, for the time that he’s at Mercedes.

“I don’t think it will be emotional. He’ll get through the season.

“He’ll know early on if he’s got a car capable of competing for the championship.

“If he does? They’ll have to rally around whoever is the best driver.”