Rumors about Lewis Hamilton considering a move away from Mercedes have become very strong over the last few weeks. The 38-year-old is desperate to fight for his eighth world championship before calling time on his career, so he wants to drive a car that wins him races and potentially the title.
Hamilton, being one of the greatest drivers of all time, has been linked to the most dominant team in F1 currently, Red Bull. The Milton-Keynes-based outfit has fielded arguably the strongest car in the opening two races, and people are talking about the possibility of him joining Red Bull next season.
The thought of Hamilton joining Red Bull seems ridiculous, especially when one considers the rivalry he has with Max Verstappen. The Dutch driver went toe to toe with Hamilton to deny him his eighth world championship in 2021, and that was the last time Mercedes had a competitive car.
Red Bull team principal Christian Horner, recognizes Hamilton’s greatness but said to Sky Sports that there’s no way they can fit him at the team.
Lewis Hamilton is second to none, says Christian Horner
Hamilton has broken just about every record there is to break in F1. The only record he is currently chasing is becoming the driver with the most number of world championship wins for which he is currently tied with Michael Schumacher at seven.
After Red Bull’s dominant start in 2023, Hamilton said that the RB19 is the fastest F1 car he has ever seen. Unfortunately for him, he won’t be able to get a shot at driving that or any other Red Bull car, since Horner feels there’s no place for him. He called Hamilton’s achievements ‘second to none’ but just doesn’t see a way they can ‘accommodate him’ at the team.
Horner also added that he is very happy with both Verstappen and Sergio Perez at the helm and insisted that this duo will continue to lead Red Bull’s charge, at least until the end of the 2024 season.
Hamilton’s Mercedes future up in the air?
At the Saudi Arabian GP, Mercedes were much closer to the podium places than they were in Bahrain. However, for a team that won every single constructors’ championship between 2014 and 2021, fighting as the third-best team on the grid isn’t enough.
Hamilton finished P5 in Jeddah, but was visibly frustrated with how he was stuck behind teammate George Russell. The Kings-Lynn born driver did not want to give his position up, and finished fourth, and it seems as though the tides are turning at Mercedes.
For Hamilton to stick around at Mercedes, the Brackley-based outfit has to work exceptionally hard at developing their car this year, and field a more competitive package in 2024, or else, the seven-time world champion may look elsewhere to close out his F1 career.
