Jacques Villeneuve on Lewis Hamilton: ‘He’s Just Finishing His Contract’

Lewis Hamilton’s legendary 12-year stint as a Mercedes driver is almost over but he seems to have mentally checked out already. His nonchalant attitude of not wanting to improve the W15’s performance suggests just that, and his form a big issue since the summer break — both in terms of qualifying and race pace. Jacques Villeneuve, amid this, insisted that he felt Hamilton’s mind has firmly been on Ferrari.

The 1997 World champion still thinks Hamilton is capable of competing at the front, and that he hasn’t lost his mojo. Given that he has won two races in 2024 — Britain and Belgium — what Villeneuve said is correct. Hamilton can deliver when the car is good enough.

But that’s the problem, the car. The W15 has been incredibly inconsistent, and over the last few weeks, Hamilton has lost interest in wanting to see things change. Since the Dutch GP after the break, Hamilton hasn’t had a single podium finish.

“He knew that he couldn’t win the championship this year with Mercedes, maybe a race or two, but not the championship,” Villeneuve said. “So why put all that energy into building the car and the team for someone else? Right now, he’s just finishing his contract.”

| Jacques Villeneuve was asked if Sir Lewis Hamilton is “past it”. He disagreed and said there is “no doubt” Lewis is still capable :

“Of course, it’s not. With everything he’s been able to do, he’s still capable of doing it. There’s no doubt there. Just because it’s not… pic.twitter.com/xxqwWgzaei

— sim (@sim3744) November 18, 2024

At the Sao Paulo GP earlier this month, Hamilton himself admitted that he cannot wait for the season to end. It was enough to reflect his current mental state, with frustrations piling up each weekend at Mercedes’ inability to find a short or long-term fix.

Thankfully, the seven-time World Champion won’t have to worry for much longer. Whether or not his Mercedes stint will end on a high remains unknown, but his future team Ferrari will likely provide him with a much better package — at least their positive trajectory suggests so.