Amid Air of Excitement, Mercedes Put Ugly Fullstop on Lewis Hamilton Contract Rumors

A few portals carried news of Lewis Hamilton‘s contract negotiation with Mercedes taking place in full swing. This evidently made the fans ecstatic, knowing that their favorite will still be racing with the Silver Arrows beyond 2023. As the grapevine held, a whopping $75 million a year was being offered to the champion to continue with the team. The world awaited for the golden declaration. However, a Mercedes’ spokesperson has stepped in to deny any negotiation rumors with Hamilton.

Lewis Hamilton’s current contract with Mercedes is set to expire at the end of the 2023 season. More and more speculations now surround his next move. Toto Wolff expects some back and forth but is sure that there will be an extension. But as it stands, the negotiation is not underway.

A Mercedes spokesperson revealed to Formu1a.uno that the talks have not even begun. He said, “Obviously, the winter doesn’t stop the rumor mill, and it’s been entertaining to read speculation about contract discussions when they haven’t yet begun.”

They added, “The rumors seem to have started on a French blog, Sportune, with which we don’t have a relationship – and are pretty wild in terms of what they suggest! Toto stated on record last Friday that discussions haven’t yet begun, and that’s exactly the situation”

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While the rumors have taken a life of their own, fans hope to see the dominance of Mercedes led by Hamilton return to the track.

Can Mercedes reclaim their former glory with Lewis Hamilton?

Even if the contract negotiations have not yet begun, both the driver and the team have shown eagerness to sign an extension. However, many doubts still linger in the mind of fans. The primary one being, will the team and Hamilton be willing to go in for a long haul to reclaim their lost reign?

Mercedes were in a league of their own before the Abu Dhabi GP, in 2021. Sadly, it has all been downhill from there. From Hamilton losing out on his eighth title, to the team not being able to provide him with a race-winning car in 2022. The build-up to Hamilton’s final season with Mercedes under the current contract has been nothing short of painful. However, with the improvements the team showed in the second half of the 2022 season, one can hope that they have a better understanding of their car in the upcoming season. To add to that, they even have more wind tunnel time compared to their main rivals, Ferrari and Red Bull.

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The statistics point in favor of Mercedes for the upcoming season. They may end up giving a good fight to their rivals. But the questions still remain: Can the German team provide Hamilton with a car capable of winning a championship in 2023?