The Bahrain Grand Prix was supposed to be Mercedes’ revival, with the team tipped to return to winning ways after a catastrophic 2022.
This was not the case however, as the Silver Arrows were beaten by Red Bull, Ferrari and the Aston Martin of Fernando Alonso.
This left Mercedes walking away from the Bahrain Grand Prix with 16 points, while Red Bull, who they were expected to challenge for the title, left with 43 points to their name.
Lewis Hamilton was reportedly set to sign a multi-year contract extension with Mercedes over the winter break as he targets a record breaking eighth world championship before he retires, but nothing has been signed yet.
READ: Toto Wolff makes damning claim about 2023 season after just one grand prix
It has been rumoured that Hamilton is waiting to see how competitive Mercedes will be this season before analysing his chances of winning and deciding his future.
It has been suggested that the 38-year-old could make a move to the highly impressive Aston Martin to partner his old teammate Fernando Alonso next year, but with Lance Stroll currently partnering the Spaniard, Sky Sports pundit Karun Chandhok has rejected this theory.
“I don’t think that will happen. You’re going to tell Lawrence [Stroll] to sack his son. Good luck with that,” he said.
Host Simon Lazenby has identified a different potential destination for Hamilton, suggesting that he would look good in the red of Ferrari.
READ: Aston Martin quicker than Max Verstappen’s title-winning Red Bull
“Not to Aston, but how can you rule out a move to Ferrari if [Mercedes] stay like this? He’s so desperate for that eighth, that if Ferrari did manage to stay on the coattails and they were the nearest to Red Bull,” he explained.
“He’s not put his pen to paper yet on his contract. He’s definitely waiting to see how this year’s car felt. I think the great relationship with the team and Toto [Wolff] will endure but I don’t think you can ever rule out a move to Ferrari for racing drivers because it’s their dream and he’s said it before.”
It has been reported that Mercedes are already considering abandoning the 2023 season to focus on 2024, with the gap to Red Bull not being ground that the Silver Arrows can make up over the course of the current season.