Formula 1: Lewis Hamilton could end Ferrari rumors early

Lewis Hamilton could put an early end to the rumors that he will drive for Ferrari in the 2021 Formula 1 season, as he is reportedly nearing a contract extension with Mercedes.

With such a limited number of drivers under contract beyond the conclusion of the 2020 Formula 1 season following a Silly Season that was rather tame and featured only two changes, there has been much talk about potential driver moves that could take place ahead of next year.

Magnifying these talks is the fact that Liberty Media are slated to introduce a whole new set of rules and regulations aimed at making the sport more competitive, and among those new rules and regulations is a budget cap. This budget cap, set at $175 million, notably excludes driver salaries.

Two drivers whose contracts expire after the 2020 season are six-time champion Lewis Hamilton of Mercedes and four-time champion Sebastian Vettel of Ferrari, the two highest paid drivers in the sport.

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Given Vettel’s recent decline in performance, there has been mounting speculation that the 2020 season will be his sixth and final season with the Scuderia, and there has been nothing to indicate otherwise.

Unless he experiences a career rebirth in 2020 alongside Charles Leclerc, to whom the team have just committed through at least the 2024 season, he will likely be replaced. There have already been several possible replacement candidates discussed for the 2021 season, and Hamilton is the most prominent one of them.

Hamilton is the only driver in Formula 1 history with more than three championships who has never driven for the Italian team. Vettel, four-time champion Alain Prost, five-time champion Juan Manuel Fangio and seven-time champion Michael Schumacher have all done so.

In fact, in 13 seasons (14 including 2020), he has never driven a car powered by anything but Mercedes, having driven for McLaren from 2007 to 2012 before making the move to the Mercedes factory outfit ahead of the 2013 campaign.

The Hamilton to Ferrari rumors have only heated up more and more over the last few months, with one report even calling the move “certain”, especially since Hamilton is poised to break Schumacher’s all-time wins record of 91 and tie his all-time titles record of seven in 2020.

That would put him in position to possible secure his 100th win and record-breaking eighth championship competing for the most iconic and successful team in the sport’s history.

But now these rumors may be able to cool down if not burn out completely, which is quite an interesting development considering the fact that there are still nearly two months to go until the scheduled start of the 2020 season.

According to Gazzetta dello Sport‘s Luigi Perna, Hamilton and Mercedes are nearing another two-year contract extension, just like the one he signed two years ago, that would keep him with the Silver Arrows through the 2022 season.

Here is what he had to say.

"“In the meantime, Lewis Hamilton is in discussion with Mercedes over the renewal of his contract. The negotiation, which will see Hamilton extend his stay until the end of 2022, is at an advanced stage and is worth in the region of 45m Euros a year with bonuses.”"

45m Euros is equivalent to roughly $50 million, which would keep Hamilton as the sport’s highest paid driver, and quite comfortably.

At the end of the day, the move makes sense. No driver in Formula 1 history has had as much success at any one team as Hamilton has had with Mercedes, and there is no reason to believe that that will end anytime soon.

Hamilton has not won fewer than nine races in a season since his first year with Mercedes in 2013 when he won only one, but that was before the start of the V6 turbo hybrid era, when Mercedes became the dominant force they are today.

The 34-year-old Briton has won each of the last three and five of the last six world championships, missing out on six straight titles to open up the V6 turbo hybrid era by falling just five points short to teammate Nico Rosberg back in 2016. He has won 62 races since this era began back in 2014.

And he is only getting better, having just tied his career-highs in wins and podium finishes and set a new career-high in points in the 2019 season.

Why leave?

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With Lewis Hamilton nearing a deal with Mercedes on a two-year contract extension through the 2022 Formula 1 season, the Hamilton to Ferrari rumors appear to be poised for an early grave. But in another two years, assuming Hamilton doesn’t retire before then, expect them to emerge once again, but about the 2023 season.

And who knows? Unlike now, by then, Hamilton will probably be the winningest driver in Formula 1 history and the all-time world championships leader, so what would he have to lose?

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