Michael Schumacher played a key role in Lewis Hamilton’s decision to join Ferrari

Lewis Hamilton will follow in idol Michael Schumacher’s footsteps next year to become the second seven-time Formula 1 champion to race for Ferrari, joining from Mercedes

Lewis Hamilton has revealed how watching Michael Schumacher planted the seed for his desire to race for Ferrari.

At the age of 40, the Brit will fulfil that dream next season when he completes his move to Maranello. He is leaving Mercedes after 11 years during which he won six of his seven Formula 1 titles and established himself as a global sporting megastar.

His fame is akin to that of Schumacher, the only other race to win the F1 championship on seven occasions. Just as Hamilton is the inspiration for many of the talented youngsters coming through now, the German was the idol of many racers who have come and gone.

Hamilton proudly counts himself among those people inspired to pursue a career in motorsport by Schumacher. And it was watching the now 55-year-old dominate F1 with Ferrari that ultimately led to him wanting to do the same thing.

Speaking to the Times, Hamilton said: “It is so exciting because I remember as a kid watching Michael. Every driver watches that car and you’re like: ‘What would it be like to sit in the red cockpit?'”

The careers of Hamilton and Schumacher did cross over, even though the German’s first retirement from F1 came at the end of 2006 – months before the Briton made his first appearance. Hamilton had already won his first title by the time Schumacher returned to the grid.

In 2010, he answered the call to come out of retirement and race for the new Mercedes F1 team. He was the experienced veteran asked to guide young compatriot Nico Rosberg, who would also go on to become the F1 champion in 2016 before instantly retiring.

They were not as competitive as they where for the last ten years during the early years of F1. Schumacher could not win a race with the Silver Arrows in as many as three seasons; however, he again managed to get on the podium, albeit third position in the 2012 European GP held in Valencia.

At the same time, he was not quite as successful an employee at McLaren as might have wished for. And when Schumacher declared another intention to quit F1 for the last time by the end of 2012, the Brit seized the opportunity to accept the challenge and join Mercedes as Schumacher’s substitute.

This was considered as a high risk undertake at that time, but turned out to be a worthy venture in the end. McLaren are quite formidable today but they were stuck in the middle ground for years as Hamilton and his crew dominated between 2014 and 2021, winning eight successive constructors’ championships and six more drivers’ championships for their man.