Will Lewis Hamilton sign another contract with Mercedes extending his present deal? Or will he retire? Or he may go join some other team like Ferrari! Sadly, so there are so much confusion and so many questions but very few answers. Even Mercedes don’t know if Hamilton will hold up the intrigue to stay together with the team risking all his dignity and winning records, or if he will prefer to quit. However, one thing Mercedes know: whom to call if Hamilton goes.
It will indeed be a BIG problem for the Brackley team to lose their superstar driver Lewis Hamilton just because they are not able to provide him the championship-winning car. But it seems like the boss of Mercedes, Toto Wolff, already “has solutions” for the problems coming after Hamilton’s walk away.
Meanwhile, several reports are saying that the Silver Arrows have prepared a minimum of two years contract for Hamilton. But so far, no pen has been put on the papers. By the end of the 2023 f1 season, the British driver is supposed to be a free driver. But how can he go away with a dream alive in his heart: a dream to become the eighth-time F1 world champion?
The only reason why fans are relieved that Lewis Hamilton is not retiring this year is that his goals are yet to be achieved, and thus he will stay. But this is not the reason that can give relives to the Silver Arrows. They know that cars like W13 and W14 are not worth breaking the record of Michael Schumacher. So they must accept Hamilton’s goodbye.
Mercedes Has A Lot Of Options Available If Lewis Hamilton Departs
Meanwhile, this statement from Mercedes’s principal is somehow explaining how serious this issue is when we say Hamilton MIGHT leave. Wolff asserted that “Hamilton will tell us in advance if he wants to stay or leave.” But with all his mind, Wolff does not think that the British ace will come to inform the team that he is leaving Mercedes overnight.
But here comes the haunting part, “the drivers definitely have the right to make such decisions.” Each driver has the right to abandon the team after the deal ends. Nevertheless, Lewis Hamilton is not of them. This is what Toto Wolff believes. But he also reckons that at that point, if you think that you are a team yearned by others, the proper solutions will appear themselves.
Speaking of the best options available to replace Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes has Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc. In 2020 Wolff showed interest in both of them. But as you know, Max is now a Red Bull star. He is no more an option. Leclerc, on the other hand, sounds like a perfect fit. He is currently in a contract with Ferrari till 2024. But the struggles with the Frrari cars are enough to let him switch to a team that has developed a seven-time world champion like Hamilton.
In addition, according to the F1 pundit Karun Chandhok, Lando Norris, who is currently driving for MacLaren, is also a good option. So, if Hamilton quits, Mercedes will have many young drivers wishing to sit in the vacant seat. It looks like Toto Wolff really has the solutions.