Formula 1: Lewis Hamilton may not sign a contract for a long time
By Asher Fair
It might be quite a while before Lewis Hamilton signs a contract extension for the 2021 Formula 1 season, despite his goal of getting a deal done by Christmas.
As it stands right now, 19 of the 20 seats on the grid for the 2021 Formula 1 season have been secured, with Mercedes being the only one of the sport’s 10 teams to have not solidified their pairing for the new year.
That is because seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton has still not signed an extension to compete with the Silver Arrows, and as a result, he is no longer under contract to compete in any more races for the team just months after breaking Michael Schumacher’s all-time wins record.
The 95-time race winner has said that he would like to get a deal put together for next year by Christmas.
But with Christmas Day being today, that does not appear likely in any way. In fact, even before 2020 ends is unlikely.
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Even though Hamilton was listed on the initial FIA entry list by Mercedes for the 2021 season and even though team principal and CEO Toto Wolff has recently signed a three-year extension of his own, it could still be months before the 35-year-old Briton signs a new deal.
Wolff has said that it may not be signed until the night before preseason testing at Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, which is not scheduled to begin until Tuesday, March 2. This means that Hamilton could be without a deal until there are only roughly two and a half weeks to go until the start of the season, with practice for the season-opening Australian Grand Prix at Albert Park Grand Prix Circuit scheduled to begin on Friday, March 19.
Here is what Wolff had to say on the matter, according to Autosport.
"“From my point of view, we had such a successful run at championships in the past seven years, that there is no reason not to continue. He is on the top of his game and he will be for a while. And that’s why continuing together is a no brainer.“If you refer to why haven’t we got a signed contract? The reason is simple. We always prioritised about getting this championship done, and not being distracted by sometimes difficult discussions, as is the nature of negotiation. But then COVID struck. So it has delayed us a little bit, but we are not worried in eventually getting it done.“We are putting no special date to it, because we don’t want to be put under pressure from you guys [the media] while it’s not signed yet. So sooner or later, it needs to be done. At the latest before we go testing.”"
Interestingly, the team did manage to finalize a one-year extension for Valtteri Bottas back in early August, however. Bottas has won nine races since joining Mercedes in 2017. Hamilton has won 42 races during the same four-year period.
We all know that the longer Hamilton goes without signing a deal, the more the rumors will heat up that George Russell is taking his place. But suffice it to say that this does appear to be a matter of when, not if.
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The 2021 Formula 1 season, which is slated to feature a record-breaking 23 races, is scheduled to begin on Sunday, March 21.