Hamilton: "You have got to do what is right for you"

McLaren period

Hamilton made his debut at McLaren in 2007 and was immediately successful. With four victories, the Brit competed directly for the world title in his first season. A year later in 2008, Hamilton captured his first title after a bizarre finale in Brazil. In total, Hamilton won 21 Grands Prix in six seasons for McLaren.

When the Brit made the switch from McLaren to Mercedes, many people looked up to this in amazement. For Hamilton himself the choice was not easy either: "Without their support, along with Mercedes, I wouldn't have made it to Formula 1, being that it is so expensive so there was no way, as family, that we had the sorts of money that some other families are able to throw at this sport. So my loyalty was to them, but at the time, I had to think about what the future would hold and what I wanted to be a part of ," says Hamilton at Motorsport.com.

Experiencing the growth phase

Hamilton indicated that he wanted to experience a growth phase of a team and wanted to join a reasonably inexperienced team. "That was an exciting challenge and I didn't know how long it was going to be until we got to winning ways. But I truly, truly believed that we would get there at some stage," continues Hamilton who won once in his first season at Mercedes.

Hamilton remembers the phone call to Whitmarsh, who was McLaren's team boss at the time. "Calling my boss, calling Martin in particular, was one of the hardest calls that I've ever had to make. I hope that he has forgiven me by now! I think so, because he understands, but ultimately I think it was the right decision. You can't have anyone else influence that decision. As long as you do your homework, you have got to do what is right for you, and at the time, that is what I did."