Lewis Hamilton has addressed the speculation linking him with a move to Ferrari for 2024.
The Briton’s contract with his current team, Mercedes, expires at the end of 2023 and, as has been the case in the past when his contract has been approaching its expiry, he has been linked with a potential exit from the Silver Arrows because of that.
Indeed, there has been considerable reports that Ferrari are lining up a contract offer for the seven-time world champion in a bid to lure him away for 2024, replacing one of Carlos Sainz or Charles Leclerc within the team.
It was no surprise, then, that Hamilton was asked about the potential for a switch to the Scuderia in 2024 and, again unsurprisingly, he batted away such talk as nothing but speculation:
“I think naturally with contract negotiations there will always be speculation and unless you hear anything from me that is what it is,” Hamilton said in the Monaco Grand Prix pre-weekend press conference.
“My team is working closely behind the scenes with Toto [Wolff.] We almost have the contract ready, and I’m in a much better position than before because I remember doing it on my own and it was very stressful.”
The party line has been that Mercedes and Hamilton will extend their relationship for a little while longer yet, and it would be a big shock to see them part ways at the end of this season, despite them seeing a dip in their success in the last year and a half.
Ultimately, Hamilton wants to be driving for a team that is winning as he tries to get that eighth world championship title, though it is of course Red Bull that are the fastest team at the moment and he is not going to be going there any time soon.
He’ll be looking to see that Mercedes can be the best-placed to close the gap to the Bulls over the coming months, then, and will get an idea of whether that is going to be possible with a host of new upgrades coming to the W14 in Monte-Carlo.
An entirely changed sidepod structure is to be introduced, and though Monaco typically gives little away in terms of how upgrades are working, Hamilton will surely be pleased that a potential step change with the car is about to unfold.
