Hamilton opens up on growing up and the challenge of moving to Mercedes

Perhaps it was the altitude. Maybe it was the fresh perspective gleaned from being 28 floors up in Tokyo's Conrad Hotel. Whatever it was, Lewis Hamilton broke his silence on Wednesday to offer an insight into the reasons behind his impending move from McLaren to Mercedes, describing it as the "toughest decision" of his career but one he felt compelled to make.

Hamilton had taken a metaphorical back seat when the move was finally confirmed last Friday. As Mercedes trumpeted their new signing, and McLaren unveiled Sergio Perez as his replacement, the 2008 world champion remained hunkered down in Asia, where he had stayed on following the Singapore race two weeks ago.

Relaxed ... Lewis Hamilton swung "like a pendulum".Credit: Getty Images

On Wednesday, though, Hamilton poured forth on every aspect of the saga, admitting he had "swung like a pendulum" as he weighed up the pros and cons; revealing he finally made up his mind while lounging pool-side in Thailand last week; and confessing, intriguingly, that he had yet to hear from Ron Dennis, McLaren's executive chairman and the man who oversaw his rise from karting to formula one world champion. Emotions on both sides are clearly still raw.

"It has been very, very stressful," Hamilton conceded. "I've been with this team since I was 13 and met Ron when I was 10. My dream back then was to race for this team. It was a little bit like a pendulum because one moment I would think, 'Let's go for it,' the next I would think, 'I'm going to stay.' That's why I took my time; because I wanted to make sure I stuck with one of [those feelings]."

Despite Eddie Jordan's claim that a deal with Mercedes was struck weeks ago, Hamilton insisted that he only made up his mind last week, after his retirement from the lead in Singapore left him 52 points behind Ferrari's Fernando Alonso in the drivers' championship.

"The DNF [did not finish] made no difference," he said. "I had kind of already had the feeling a few days before but it stuck with me and this time I didn't have any swinging back.

"Then I got to Thailand and it was incredibly peaceful and I just sat by the pool and thought for several hours. It was important to do it on my terms. I wasn't going to be pushed and rushed, although there was a lot of pressure."

Hamilton said Martin Whitmarsh, the McLaren team principal, had been looking for clarification about his future plans for some time. "Martin had been asking me when I was going to do a deal since China last year. I had a couple of deadlines; I didn't meet any one of them. It was really, really tough but once I made the decision I was so much more relaxed."

Whether he will remain so relaxed at Suzuka this weekend remains to be seen. The dynamic within the McLaren garage for the final six races of this season is going to be fascinating to observe as they strive to win both championships while having an outlaw for an in-law.

Hamilton said he did not anticipate any issues. "At the end of the day, my mechanics will be upset because they have worked their asses off for me, but at some stage they might decide to go and work for another team," he said.

Dennis is another issue. Does he feel betrayed by his former protege? "I don't know, you will have to ask Ron," Hamilton said. "When I spoke to Martin I said that the plan was not to burn bridges. I don't feel as though I am going out of McLaren through the back door. I am going out the front door, happily.

"The way I look at it is that I am walking over that bridge and down a different path. If that path brings me back, who knows? I think I will always have McLaren in my heart."

Hamilton ended by trying to explain the rationale behind his decision. "I could have stayed and it would have been easy," he said. "There was no unrest with McLaren. They are an incredible team. They have the best facilities by far. The factory is untouchable and it will get even better because they are building the new wind tunnel at some stage. They have got incredibly intelligent people. They've got everything, really, so in fact they should be winning more.

"I had two offers on the table which were very, very similar. Martin asked me what more they could have done. I said, 'To be honest, Martin, it is about the challenge. It is a step that I want to make.' I don't know what is going to happen. I just know that everyone has to experience these things, working with new people and in new environments.

"It wasn't about Ross [Brawn, Mercedes team principal]. It wasn't about Niki [Lauda, Mercedes-Benz vice-chairman]. It was about Mercedes, a team which has not been that successful over the last couple of years.

"I know some of the greats have gone from a great car to not such a great car and have helped to develop a winning team. Michael Schumacher . . . went from being a world champion to Ferrari. We haven't really got any other driver in formula one who is known for that. I hope that one day someone can say that about me."

Telegraph, London