Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff has admitted that he never wants to “divorce” Lewis Hamilton, with the Austrian being convinced that the drivers wants the same.
A new contract for Hamilton is still yet to be announced, with his current deal to expire at the end of the season.
Both Wolff and Hamilton have stressed that a new deal will be signed, but there’s still no sign of any confirmation.
The duo has worked together since 2013, when Wolff moved from Williams to Mercedes.
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Hamilton, of course, joined the Brackley-based team in 2012, when they were under the leadership of Ross Brawn.
Wolff replaced Brawn the following season and has remained as team boss ever since.
The pair have experienced every high and low of the past 10.5 years together, with the lowest of lows having been the conclusion of the 2021 season.
Hamilton and Wolff clearly have an incredible amount of respect for one another, with Wolff admitting that Hamilton isn’t just a colleague, he’s a “friend”.
With his new contract yet to be confirmed, there has been plenty of speculation that the seven-time World Champion could move on; however, it seems like Wolff will never let this happen.
He revealed that he invited Hamilton to dinner at his house in Oxford, where he explained to the driver that he never wants to separate with him.
“Lewis has become a friend and over years we’ve gone through difficult spells and very good moments,” Wolff said on BBC’s Desert Island Discs.
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“We celebrated many championships and we had discussions among ourselves which were not always easy. A key moment was at the end of 2016 where we didn’t speak to each other for a while.
“So I invited him to come to my kitchen in Oxford and sit down and have a chat. The analogy I gave to him is that also I have arguments with [my wife] Susie.
“Even if we shout at each other, even if we have this argument, there’s never thought of divorcing, and that’s why I said to him ‘I don’t want to divorce you and neither do you. Because I want the best racing driver in our cars and you want to have the best cars’.”