- Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff has hinted that Lewis Hamilton might sign a new £50 million deal
- This makes him the highest-paid F1 driver on the grid
- He will sign the deal before the Canadian Grand Prix
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff has hinted that Lewis Hamilton might sign a new £50 million ($63.9 million) Mercedes deal before this weekend’s Canadian Grand Prix.
Wolff on Thursday responded to questions by the press about Hamilton’s contract with Mercedes.
He said that things are in the right direction and it will be before the Canadian Grand Prix slated for this weekend.
“It is going to happen soon, and we are talking days more than weeks. We are trying hard (to get it done before Canada). I will see him today and maybe we will talk about it. We have such a good relationship that we dread the moment we need to talk about money,” Mail Sport reports.
Hamilton’s current deal with the Silver Arrows runs to the end of the 2023 season. The British driver’s wage demands caused a delay in implementing his huge salary demand.
His desire is to reclaim the title of the highest-paid driver on the grid, surpassing two-time world champion Max Verstappen, who makes almost £40 million ($51.1 million) annually.
The 38-year-old Hamilton is rumoured to be looking for a multi-year contract that will keep him racing after he is 40 and make him a Mercedes ambassador.
Christian Horner with Lewis Hamilton. Photo/Sky Sports
Wolff shares in his dream and acknowledges that Hamilton is an important personality in F1 history more so for Mercedes.
The Mercedes team principal added that Hamilton and Mercedes have had more than a professional relationship since 2013 when he joined the team.
LEWIS HAMILTON FERRARI DEAL
In May, there were rumours that Ferrari was offering Hamilton a £40 million ($49 million) deal to sign with the F1 team starting the 2024 season.
The Italian team was reportedly bent on singing Hamilton in his quest for an eighth World Championship title.
The Ferrari leadership was seriously exploring two possibilities in the Hamilton deal according to several reliable sources in the UK and Italy.
Firstly and most popular choice was to pair the seasoned F1 driver with resident Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc starting 2024. If this happened, Leclerc’s fellow driver Carlos Sainz would move to another Formula One team.
A second scenario was to replace Hamilton with Leclerc meaning, the British driver will be paired up with Spanish driver Sainz at Ferrari.
WAS $49 MILLION FERRARI DEAL FOR LEWIS HAMILTON TRUE?
Two days after reports of the Ferrari deal emerged, the British Mercedes driver dismissed it as a rumour. He said that he was focused on clinching an eighth championship with Mercedes.
The 38-year-old Mercedes driver said that his focus was on signing a contract extension with Mercedes since his current one lapses at the end of the 2023 season.
The seven-time Formula One champion spoke on the subject on Thursday in Monaco. He claimed that the shortcomings of his W14 car doesn’t stop him from signing a new contract with Mercedes.
Hamilton said that he has faith in his team and that a contract is almost ready. This leaves him with the task of focusing on the grid.
“My personal team are working closely behind the scenes with Toto and we are almost at the end of having a contract ready,” Mail Sport reports.
Lewis Hamilton. Photo by Sky Sports
“Having a team to focus on that job is a much better position than I was in before. I used to do it all on my own and it was very stressful and I don’t have to do that anymore,” Hamilton adds.
Speaking of his current car, he notes that it lacks significance and that Mercedes has had the wrong car all through the season. He said that Mercedes has made some less-than-ideal decisions over the last two years, but the championship-winning spirit lives on.
He is glad that the team is currently working on rectifying these issues. Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff announced the launch of a new upgrade of the W14 at the Monaco Grand Prix.
WILL CHARLES LECLERC JOIN MERCEDES?
In light of Hamilon’s new contract with Mercedes, Leclerc who is Ferrari’s resident driver will not join Mercedes. Earlier talk was that he would join the F1 team to replace Hamilton who was purportedly set to join Ferrari in the 2024 season.
Leclerc has in the past expressed frustration with the team that has seen a slump in his performance this season.
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