MOTORSPORT: Sir Lewis finally signs for F1 in 2021
One-year extension with Mercedes-AMG primes Lewis Hamilton for a record eighth world titleLewis Hamilton has finally ended the speculation about his Formula 1 future by signing a one-year extension to his contract with the Mercedes-AMG team.
Nothing has been revealed about the terms of the newly-knighted star’s deal with AMG, which is widely rumoured to earn him $40 million and includes a clause that allows him to veto any potential teammate – including mercurial Max Verstappen.
It also only refers to 2021. Nothing beyond.
But the new deal, together with the domination of the Mercedes-AMG team through the latest hybrid era in grand prix racing, instantly confirms Hamilton’s favouritism for a record breaking eighth Formula 1 World Championship.
Instead of focussing on the sporting side of the deal, Hamilton and his team boss Toto Wolff are talking about off-track developments.
“Our team has achieved incredible things together and we look forward to building on our success even further, while continuously looking to improve, both on and off the track,” said Hamilton.
“I'm equally determined to continue the journey we started to make motorsport more diverse for future generations and I am grateful that Mercedes has been extremely supportive of my call to address this issue.
“I'm proud to say we are taking that effort further this year by launching a foundation dedicated to diversity and inclusion in the sport.”
The new deal is not remotely surprising, as Hamilton needs Mercedes to continue his extraordinary run of success and the ‘black [formerly silver] arrows’ are happy to continue with him until there is an obvious successor – or he bores of breaking F1 records.
“We have always been aligned with Lewis that we would continue, but the very unusual year we had in 2020 meant it took some time to finish the process,” Wolff said.
“Together, we have decided to extend the sporting relationship for another season and to begin a longer-term project to take the next step in our shared commitment to greater diversity within our sport.
“Lewis’ competitive record stands alongside the best the sports world has ever seen, and he is a valued ambassador for our brand and our partners. The story of Mercedes and Lewis has written itself into the history books of our sport over the past eight seasons, and we are hungry to compete and to add more chapters to it.”
The 2021 F1 calendar kick off in Bahrain on March 26-28 and at this stage will comprise 23 rounds – including the Australian F1 GP on November 19-21.
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