Sir Lewis Hamilton joined Mercedes along with Toto Wolff in 2013. The duo of team principal and star driver dawned a new era in F1 history and not just in Mercedes’s. Moreover, the kind of dominance F1 fans have never seen before. Mercedes team ruled from 2014 to 2021. It was the whole turbo-hybrid era when Mercedes was unbeatable. More specifically, Lewis Hamilton was the one constant driver during this dominant period of Mercedes. Hamilton won six titles for the German team adding to his first title with McLaren back in 2008. Hence, the Mercedes star driver equaled Michael Schumacher, winning his seventh title in 2020.
Later, Hamilton was on his way to become the first driver in F1 history to win eight titles. But Red Bull’s Max Verstappen stole that chance away in 2021 from the great British driver. Since last year, Hamilton has been winless, coming to the middle of 2023. It has been the longest gap for the seven-time champion to find a win. Moreover, it does not look like ending any time soon. However, the seven-time champion mentioned several times that he won’t leave Mercedes unless anything goes wrong between him and Toto Wolff. Moreover, the Mercedes boss mentioned that they have signed a contract extension emotionally, but they just need to do it formally.
Toto Wolff Has Faith That Lewis Hamilton Will Stay In Mercedes Next Year
On top of that, there were rumors suggesting Lewis Hamilton demanded an ambassadorial role in his new contract. But Toto Wolff denied such rumors, saying they are not thinking about it. Moreover, the ambassadorial role is not part of their contract negotiations. Other than that, Toto Wolff mentioned that he is doing everything he can to keep Hamilton on the team. But the Mercedes boss believes that Hamilton does not need much persuasion.
Albeit, Mercedes has not been able to provide him with a championship-winning car for a couple of years. However, Lewis Hamilton might want to stick around for the resurrection of the team. Moreover, Toto Wolff is confident that Hamilton knows about all the goodness inside the team. At the same time, Lewis Hamilton has become a close friend of Wolff. Mercedes’s boss mentioned that they had seen great moments as well as difficult times together. Hence, it is not easy to break such a bond just like that.
What Would Happen If Hamilton Moves To Ferrari?
Unless Mercedes fixes the W14 car’s rear end and porpoising issue, Hamilton might stay winless. However, he is 38 and at the twilight of his career. He might try to find an easier way to get to his eighth title. What would that way be? Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes’s current contract ends after this season. There have been rumors that Ferrari showed keen interest in signing Lewis Hamilton. The Red Devils would give the seven-time champion a pretty good offer as well.
It would be interesting to see Hamilton wearing the iconic Red uniform. Moreover, Hamilton’s hero, Ayrton Senna, also dawned on the red uniform once in his career. On top of that, Michael Schumacher was so successful with Ferrari. Also, Hamilton’s mentor in Mercedes, Niki Lauda, was a legendary Ferrari driver. Hence, Lewis Hamilton would be part of a great legacy if he joins the most successful team in F1 history before he retires.
