FIA To Honor Lewis Hamilton In His Final Mercedes AMG F1 Appearance At The Abu Dhabi Grand Prix

The Abu Dhabi GP will be an emotional affair for several reasons, but one of the prime grounds will be the farewell of Lewis Hamilton as the driver will be departing from the Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 Team. The seven-time World Champion will be joining forces with Scuderia Ferrari in 2025, and the final F1 race of 2024 will be the last of Hamilton in Mercedes. To honour the legacy of Sir Lewis, the FIA has unveiled plans to celebrate Hamilton’s final race with the Mercedes F1 team in Abu Dhabi.  

The Abu Dhabi Grand Prix will be the final time when the fans will see Lewis Hamilton in the Silver Arrows. The seven-time F1 world champion will be a part of the storied Italian F1 side Scuderia Ferrari, where he will partner with Charles Leclerc. To commemorate his final race with Mercedes, the FIA has announced that Lewis Hamilton will participate in the post-race festivities, joining the top three drivers around the Yas Marina Circuit to mark the occasion with fans.

“After taking the chequered flag, the top three drivers and driver of car number 44 [Hamilton, ed.] should stay on the track, drop back of the field and then drive directly to the Grid, where there will be the opportunity for post-championship celebrations should they wish to do so,” the FIA’s post-race document said as reported by the GP Blog.

However, following a terrible qualifying session, Sir Lewis Hamilton will have a difficult time earning his final points for Mercedes AMG F1. He finished 18th in qualifying for his final race with the Formula 1 team, which was a huge strategy mistake that cost him dearly. After his final lap was marred by his car running over a marker pole that Kevin Magnussen’s car had knocked onto the track, Hamilton was one of five drivers eliminated in the first round of Abu Dhabi Grand Prix qualifying.

Due to other drivers’ penalties, Hamilton will start Sunday’s race in the 16th place on the grid. George Russell, his Mercedes teammate, will start sixth after qualifying seventh. McLaren’s Lando Norris is in pole position.