WATCH: Lewis Hamilton in tears at Mercedes headquarters as he says goodbye after 12 years

Ahead of the upcoming Formula One season, Lewis Hamilton bids his now-former Mercedes team a final farewell as he gets ready to join Ferrari. When Hamilton declared before the 2024 season that the next year would be his last with the team where he has won six of his seven world titles, it rocked the racing world. His transfer was a big plot point for the season, which concluded last weekend in Abu Dhabi. 

The 39-year-old finished fourth, barely ahead of teammate George Russell, after navigating the grid. When he waved goodbye to the Mercedes crew at the race, he made an emotional gesture. The farewells have continued throughout the week, ending on Friday in Brackley. The town in West Northamptonshire is home to the Mercedes team's headquarters, which is formally known as the Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team. 

This week, Lewis Hamilton and the other team members were in town. With Russell and team principal Toto Wolff joining him on stage, Hamilton used the microphone to express gratitude to everyone present at Mercedes headquarters for the diligent work done by the backroom crew during his tenure with the company.

Watch here the video:

One last emotional Team debrief, with Lewis, Toto and George at Brackley 🥹 pic.twitter.com/U8BTsp1TEu

— Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team (@MercedesAMGF1) December 13, 2024

Lewis Hamilton ended his last race with Mercedes on fourth spot

'You know I'm leaving, [but] you guys are going to go and have so much more success moving forward because this is an incredible group of people,' he said. 'There's so much talent and so much passion here. 'Anyone would be lucky to be working with you. I hope that when I do eventually stop racing, I can come back and visit you all, and I know we can always look back on these fond memories, what a journey".

Thank you and farewell, Lewis ❤ pic.twitter.com/O3JXKAXQ0T

— Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team (@MercedesAMGF1) December 13, 2024

Every trophy Hamilton had won during his tenure with the team was also present at the farewell. In a Mercedes, he won 84 races overall. As dusk approached, a massive firework display went off, and he was in tears as he walked out of the plant for the last time, cheered on by the employees and even some admirers. In Abu Dhabi, Lewis Hamilton finished his final Formula One Grand Prix weekend with Mercedes in fourth place. On social media, the seven-time world champion bid farewell to the German squad for the last time following a "farewell tour."