Hamilton wanted to "hold on to that moment" after climbing out of his Mercedes for the last time

F1 Grand Prix, GP Abu Dhabi, Yas Marina Circuit

Having ended his 12-year spell at Mercedes with a sensational recovery drive, seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton has revealed that he wanted to "hold on to that moment" when he climbed out of his W15 for the last time.

Having displayed a strong performance all through the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix weekend, Hamilton endured a shock elimination in Q1 after a loose bollard got stuck under the front wing of his car.

Although he posted impressive sector times in the opening two segments of the Yas Marina Circuit, he lost a significant chunk of time through the last corners due to the loose bollard. It meant the seven-time world champion only qualified 18th, but he started from two places higher up on the grid due to penalties for Charles Leclerc and Alexander Albon.

On Sunday, Hamilton became the only driver to start on Pirelli's hard compound in the 58-lap Abu Dhabi race, and while he had a slow start to his race, his car came alive in free air at the end of his opening stint despite running on degrading tyres.

When the seven-time world champion switched to the yellow-banded medium tyres, he started to display eye-catching pace which enabled him to go through the field, and ultimately make a fantastic overtaking move on his team-mate George Russell on the final lap.

Reflecting on his last race with Mercedes, Hamilton commented: “The first stint was really, really difficult. I wasn’t losing hope, but I was just like, ‘ah, it’s not going as well as I thought it would.’ But I just didn’t give up, kept pushing, ‘come on we can get there’. Switched onto the [medium] tyres and the car came alive. But I had a massive gap to close, so I just focused on getting just absolutely everything from the car and not giving up.

"To come through the field from P16 and make it back to P4 was awesome. I’m really happy with how my evening went and how the car felt. It was definitely a good way to end our time together!"

Following celebratory donuts on the grid as the most successful partnership in F1 history came to an end, Hamilton spent time kneeling next to his Mercedes W15. And asked what had been going through his mind, Hamilton explained that he wanted to "hold on to that moment."

"After the chequered flag, I was focused on just taking it all in, knowing that this was my last time in a Mercedes cockpit and savouring the emotions. I want to hold on to that moment, so I just sat there, contemplating everything we’ve been through together, all the ups and downs, and the success we’ve enjoyed.

"I can’t tell you how much I am going to miss this team. I’ve worked with them every day for the last 12 years and there is so much love there. That won’t disappear, no matter that we will be racing each other on track next year," concluded Hamilton.