Contract negotiations and other related driver drama are usually the talks of the silly season, especially the days leading up to the winter testing. However, this silly season’s been fairly quiet. There are exactly zero changes to the grid from the end of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, as all 20 drivers are retained for the next year. Some negotiations were straightforward, some were cutthroat, and some took months on end during the 2023 season.

One contract negotiation that took a lot of time this season was, of course, the contract of the seven-time world champion, Lewis Hamilton. Mercedes had stepped up this year when compared to the last – but they still had no wins to show. All that being said, they did manage to secure P2 in the constructors’ and P3 in the drivers’ championship, which is a pretty decent result, all things considered. However, when a Mercedes insider revealed that Hamilton’s contract was very straightforward, it triggered the irony in the negotiation process.

Lewis Hamilton’s contract negotiations

During the year, Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes did go through multiple rounds of negotiation before a contract saw the light of the day. Of course, the details are kept private, but Hamilton reportedly did agree to a contract that set the Brackley outfit by $127 million. There were several roadblocks, and months had elapsed before this could happen.

It was not for lack of options from Hamilton’s end for sure. For instance, he reportedly turned down a guaranteed contract with Ferrari, and naturally, every team up and down the paddock (minus perhaps Red Bull) would want Lewis to drive their car. Nevertheless, nuances like sponsors and other contractual obligations came in the way between the two entities.

While from the outside it looks quite complicated, this is pretty straightforward, according to Mercedes Insider. Speaking in the F1r The Girls podcast, Carrie Donaghy, the Motorsport Legal Director at Mercedes, commented on this. “Negotiating the Lewis contract is pretty straightforward. He has been with the team for so long, you know, there’s like a framework in place.”

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Both drivers have secured contract extensions going into 2024. However, according to Pundits, including a former Ferrari boss, Mercedes needs to cut George Russell loose at the earliest.

Mercedes might need to cut George Russell loose

According to several pundits, if Mercedes and Hamilton are serious about winning the elusive eighth drivers’ championship, they might need to let go of George Russell. Sports Journalist and former Ferrari Team Principal Peter Windsor had the following to say about the Brackley outfit’s decision to retain the young Briton.

“The problem is George, of course. It’s not anything more or less than that. And you’ve got to remember Lewis wanted to keep Valtteri so something big happened there in Lewis’ mind. They didn’t listen to him and they signed George.” Here, Windsor is talking about the team dynamics between the two Britons, who may be coming to blows on the track regularly.

Some fans even quickly compare the bad dynamic that Mercedes had between Hamilton and Nico Rosberg when the pair regularly crashed into each other.

Windsor continues, “Red Bull would never in a million years have thought of signing George Russell, even if he was available, and put him alongside Max Verstappen. But Mercedes did.”

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Mercedes did take a brave call putting the two Britons together. However, only time will tell if the decision will go right for the Silver Arrows.