Seven-time Formula One champion Lewis Hamilton will leave Mercedes at the end of this year to join Ferrari on a multi-year deal, the Italian team confirmed on Thursday.

Mercedes said Hamilton activated a release clause in the two-year contract extension he signed last year. Ferrari then confirmed that the 39-year-old British driver will join in 2025.

Hamilton joined Mercedes from McLaren in 2013 and won six of his seven world titles at the Silver Arrows on his way to a record 103 race wins.

I have had an amazing 11 years with this team and Im so proud of what we have achieved together. Mercedes has been part of my life since I was 13 years old, Hamilton said in a team statement. Its a place where I have grown up, so making the decision to leave was one of the hardest decisions I have ever had to make. But the time is right for me to take this step and Im excited to be taking on a new challenge.

Hamilton last won the title in 2020 and has not won a race since the penultimate race of the 2021 campaign.

Ferrari has not won a drivers title since Kimi Raikkonen in 2007.