Lewis Hamilton ‘has five years at least’ left in F1 in Mercedes contract update

Lewis Hamilton has suggested that he could stay in Formula One until he reaches the age of 43 in a new update on his future ahead of this weekend’s British Grand Prix. The Brit is only contracted to Mercedes until the end of this year as things stand but is widely expected to sign a new deal with the team at some point over the coming weeks.

Negotiations have been taking place behind the scenes at Mercedes in recent months and it seems as though Hamilton is close to extending his stay with the German outfit, who he joined in 2013 before winning the last six of his seven Drivers’ Championship titles. The Brit is yet to officially sign on the dotted line but insisted at Silverstone on Thursday that he could still be around for a while as he continues to hunt down a record-breaking eighth individual triumph.

“I’m hoping to be here a lot longer,” he told Sky Sports in an interview that was watched by a number of fans at the circuit ahead of this weekend’s race. “I feel like I’ve got another five years in me at least, no? Let’s see, let’s see. I don’t have the pen at the moment but we’re close. I have 100 per cent faith in this team and we are going to get there.

“We have a lot to do, not only on the track but off the track, we’re doing a lot of work with really trying to improve the pipeline, making the team and the sport more diverse. We have so many great things creatively that we’re doing together as well, plus the most important thing is we want to win, so we’ve got to get back there and put the Brits back on top.”

It comes after Hamilton confirmed in Thursday’s press conference that he has settled on the main terms of his new contract at Mercedes, with Silver Arrows chief Toto Wolff saying in Austria last weekend that money and length were not factors in delaying a final agreement.

“I’m still very confident,” said Wolff when quizzed on the current state of play regarding Hamilton’s proposed extension. “They want to do it super, to every detail and sometimes you can have a situation where everything is carved out. This is not a money discussion at all.

“It is about the future, what is it that we want to do right and optimise? We’re not talking anything anymore about duration, money, all of that, it’s other topics.” Wolff was then asked about the length of Hamilton’s new deal and said: “The Brits say a couple means two, and the Americans say a couple means a few, so it is somewhere there.”

It seems as though Hamilton will be sticking around in the paddock for quite some time, with the 38-year-old still aiming to win an eighth Drivers’ Championship title before he eventually decides to bring an end to his glittering F1 career. However, only time will tell if Mercedes can give him a competitive car with the ability to rival Red Bull over the next few years, with their Austrian rivals simply operating in a league of their own as things stand.

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