Seven-time World Champion Lewis Hamilton reportedly warns Mercedes to offer him a five-year contract extension, something which would see him earn £250 million.
It’s been reported by The Daily Mail that Hamilton is demanding a five-year deal to take him to the end of 2028, by at which point he’d be 43 years old.
Interestingly, 2028 is the same year in which reigning World Champion Max Verstappen’s lucrative Red Bull deal expires.
With Verstappen having hinted at retiring following the expiration of his deal, Verstappen and Hamilton could remarkably retire at the end of the same season, should Mercedes offer the 38-year-old the mammoth contract.
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His future is the biggest talking point at the moment; however, he is remaining incredibly tight-lipped about the entire situation.
He had little to say about the contract negotiations ahead of this weekend’s Canadian Grand Prix, with him being “not really bothered” about when the deal gets sorted.
“I don’t have a huge amount to say on the contract,” Hamilton admitted ahead of the Canadian GP, as reported by the Daily Star.
“It will get done when it is done. If that is next week, or in a month’s time, as long as it gets done, I am not really bothered.”
It’s certainly appearing to be a “very complex” deal to sort for Mercedes boss Toto Wolff, especially as he’s known the 103-time race winner for so long.
According to one of The Daily Mail’s sources, Hamilton wouldn’t “accept” just a one-year extension; however, the source with ‘knowledge of the protracted negotiations’ believes George Russell could be an issue.
The source doesn’t think Russell would be happy to remain in Hamilton’s “shadow” for another five seasons, something which could cause further issues for the Silver Arrows.
“Lewis wants five years, and if it were just a one-year extension I don’t think he’d accept it,” said The Daily Mail’s source.
“They may need to reach a compromise because, while George [Russell] has probably made peace with the idea of Lewis being around for a couple of years, he might not accept being in the shadow of his team-mate for the long-term.”
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The source also confirmed that “money” certainly isn’t why the contract is taking so long to sort, neither are the previous rumours linking Hamilton to Ferrari.
Ferrari were reportedly planning a £40 million offer for Hamilton to replace Carlos Sainz; however, the source states that the veteran believes his best bet of claiming an unprecedented eighth Drivers’ Championship is to stay “where he is”.
“There is always a lure about Ferrari, but Lewis will probably think that his only hope of winning his eighth title is by staying where he is. Money is not a delaying factor,” the source added.