Toto Wolff reveals Lewis Hamilton is pushing for an extension in the already running $40 million contract with Mercedes.
Lewis Hamilton has been an extraordinary servant for Mercedes, leading them to dominate the last decade and win eight championships. Now, in the twilight of his career, Hamilton still wants to push ahead.
According to Mercedes boss Toto Wolff, Hamilton is pushing for another contract extension with the Silver Arrows. The Austrian adds that the seven-time world champion has said he wishes to continue for the next five years.
“The advantage is we speak a lot together,” said Wolff to Race. “Just last week, we sat down, and he says ‘look, I have another five years in me. How do you see that?’”
“Over time, we have just grown together. We are totally transparent with each other. Lewis will be the first one to say, ‘I can’t do this anymore’ – because I feel I haven’t got the reactions anymore, or I’ve jst lost fun doing it, and there is another generation growing up that is just very strong.”
Several times, Hamilton has also said that he wants to end his time in F1 with Mercedes. Recently, he also claimed that he would stay with them forever.
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Lewis Hamilton will be having a new contract negotiation
After saying this, Wolff affirmed that Hamilton would be involved in a new contract extension dialogue. He adds that both sides would be truly open about their interests.
“I do not doubt that whatever we agree on a contract extension, which is going to happen, we both are always going to discuss, very openly, what the future holds,” said Wolff.
A year ago today, Lewis Hamilton became the first driver in F1 history to win 100 races 🐐 pic.twitter.com/skHVbnYIPL
— ESPN F1 (@ESPNF1) September 26, 2022
The current contract with Hamilton runs till the end of the 2023 season. It remains to be seen how long Hamilton will stick with Mercedes, as they also aim to prepare for their future.
What does this mean for George Russel?
The Mercedes academy graduate George Russell was brought into Mercedes after a three-year spell at Williams, keeping their future interests in mind.
The purpose behind his hiring was that Mercedes, including Hamilton, saw him as the successor of the 103 Grand Prix winner. But if Hamilton sticks for long, how would Mercedes plan to prioritize between the two drivers?
Because Russell sees himself as the future world champion, and he would be eyeing to grab one in a couple of years. On the other hand, Hamilton is still fiercely competitive.
Thus, having a crisis in the lineup would be the last thing Mercedes would want after what happened from 2014-2016. Hamilton has constantly reiterated that he is a different teammate than before, so he could be expected to take a step back.
But it’s still a question of whether Hamilton would want to settle on a role of a deputy, which he has enjoyed from his other teammates. That can only be seen in the following years.
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