{"id":754651,"date":"2026-06-22T23:54:17","date_gmt":"2026-06-22T23:54:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/754651\/"},"modified":"2026-06-22T23:54:17","modified_gmt":"2026-06-22T23:54:17","slug":"lewis-hamilton-didnt-make-the-best-impression-on-mercedes-colleagues-after-joining-from-mclaren","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/754651\/","title":{"rendered":"Lewis Hamilton didn’t make ‘the best impression’ on Mercedes colleagues after joining from McLaren"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"\/ Follow us on Google Discover <\/a> <\/p>\n

Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes will go down as perhaps the greatest partnership in Formula 1 history, but it certainly did not start smoothly.<\/p>\n

The Brit\u2019s decision to leave McLaren<\/a> for Mercedes<\/a> was widely criticised, as the latter were not a team that were fighting for podiums, let alone championships. Martin Brundle called out Mercedes for signing Hamilton<\/a> to replace Michael Schumacher.<\/p>\n

Of course, no one would have known just how incredible the partnership would turn out to be, but it was not a good relationship to begin with. Hamilton<\/a> took his time to get used to the team.<\/p>\n

READ MORE: Ferrari driver Lewis Hamilton\u2019s life outside F1 from net worth to family<\/a><\/p>\n

Should Lewis Hamilton regret leaving Mercedes for Ferrari? <\/p>\n

\"LewisPhoto by Sona Maleterova\/Getty Images Lewis Hamilton did not make \u2018the best impression\u2019 when he first joined Mercedes<\/p>\n

Journalist Edd Straw noted on The Race F1 Podcast<\/a> how Hamilton struggled to understand how things worked at Mercedes and how to interact with his team.<\/p>\n

In many ways, it is a similar situation to what he was facing at Ferrari last year, as he struggled to adapt to the team\u2019s methods. Now, in 2026, Fred Vasseur is listening to Hamilton<\/a> and he is much more suited to the car, sitting second in the standings.<\/p>\n

\"LewisPhoto by Paul Gilham\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

It was the same story at Mercedes, as Straw recalled how his driver moves have been scrutinised over the years: \u201cIt\u2019s also a good element to feed into the whole Hamilton legacy element<\/p>\n

\u201cBecause I think this has been overstated, but people who want to kind of run down what he\u2019s done, \u2018Oh he came into a McLaren that was very good and he went to a Mercedes that had already been built up and gone through the difficult times and won, so what\u2019s he doing in terms of team building?\u2019<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd it\u2019s fair to say that, for example, when he moved to Mercedes, he didn\u2019t make the best impression on everyone initially. It took him a little bit of time to understand how to interact in the best way with the whole team, which he learned really, really well, and then he was hugely effective.\u201d<\/p>\n

How badly will Toto Wolff regret Lewis Hamilton\u2019s move to Ferrari if Mercedes do not win the 2026 title? <\/p>\n

\"TotoPhoto by Jakub Porzycki\/NurPhoto via Getty Images <\/p>\n

Hamilton was certainly effective when he found his feet at Mercedes, as he went on to win six championships and become the most decorated driver in the sport\u2019s history.<\/p>\n

Hamilton\u2019s rivalry with Nico Rosberg<\/a> perhaps cast a dark shadow over the team as it divided the two garages. But after the German\u2019s departure, the seven-time champion was in a league of his own, winning four consecutive titles between 2017 and 2020.<\/p>\n

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