Lewis Hamilton, the seven-time F1 World champion, has denied talking to Ferrari about a potential move to the team for the next season. The current contract for the 38-year-old with Mercedes runs out at the culmination of the 2023 Formula One season amidst speculation about a switch to the Prancing Horse.
The British F1 driver went on to reveal that the new contract with Mercedes is “almost ready” to be signed. Moreover, the team boss of Ferrari, Fred Vasseur, mentioned that they haven’t made any offer to Lewis Hamilton to join the Italian manufacturer next season.
Ahead of the Monaco GP, the Briton was quoted as saying to the reporters, “I think naturally when you’re in contract negotiations there’s always going to be speculation. Unless you hear it from me, then that’s what it is.” Then, Lewis Hamilton detailed his contract talks behind the scenes with Mercedes.
He said, “My team is working closely behind the scenes with Toto [Wolff], we’re almost at the end of having the contract ready. Having the team focus on that, so I can just do my job, is a much better position than I was in before. I remember I used to do all the negotiations on my own, and it was very stressful, so I don’t have to do that anymore.”
When he was asked about an offer made by Ferrari, Lewis Hamilton was quick to say “no,” to the reporters, which immediately shut down the rumours altogether. The Briton also talked about the upgrades which will be introduced by Mercedes ahead of the Monaco GP to enhance the performance of the W14 challenger.
He remarked, “It will be difficult to see just how it works at this kind of track, but I’m hopeful that it puts us a little bit closer to these guys. I don’t think we’ll be fighting for a win necessarily, but hopefully, we’ll be more in the fight.”