The thing about volcanoes is that when they’re dormant, they’re like any other piece of land. Harmless. As soon as the first spark is instigated, though, there’s no stopping the destruction that follows. Now, imagine Mercedes is that volcano. For six and a half seasons, it’s been dormant. Since Nico Rosberg’s departure in 2016, things at the Brackley team have been quite mellow. But not anymore. If you haven’t guessed it yet, the spark to Mercedes’ volcano is the bubbling rivalry between its drivers. Lewis Hamilton versus George Russell. Is this the beginning of the end?

Whether or not this is the beginning of the end for Mercedes, fans certainly aren’t happy that this year wasn’t the end of Hamilton’s tenure with the Silver Arrows. For the better part of this season, Hamilton and Toto Wolff were negotiating the seven-time champion’s contract. Considering he’s spent a decade with the team, it should’ve been a no-brainer. But it wasn’t, and the prolonged negotiations before the two-year extension announcement didn’t reflect well on Mercedes. At least not to its fanbase.

With trust issues between Hamilton and Mercedes, the George Russell factor isn’t making Hamilton’s choice to stay at Mercedes any more appealing. Things between them haven’t been okay since the Japanese GP. Instead of fighting Ferrari in Suzuka, they ended up fighting each other. At the Qatar GP, things got worse. The two Mercs collided on Lap 1, and Hamilton’s race ended as soon as it happened. While both of them apologized to the team after it happened, Russell took back his apology when he watched the replays. And the fans didn’t like that. 

Read More: ‘Trust Issues in Mercedes’: Fans Smell Something Fishy as Lewis Hamilton Takes Matters Into Own Hands

What else don’t they like? When Hamilton’s contract negotiations were ongoing, there were rumors that Ferrari offered him a $49 million deal. Recently, Wolff revealed a rendezvous Hamilton had with Ferrari that was nothing more than that. With the way Mercedes is treating Hamilton at the moment, they’re not happy that it wasn’t anything more than a pointless meeting.

Lewis Hamilton “should have gone to Ferrari”

In an interview with La Gazzetta dello Sport, Wolff said, “There was a bit of a delay, but it was clear that it would end like this, with Lewis staying with us. Some time ago, Lewis told me, ‘I saw John Elkann (Ferrari’s executive chairman) at dinner, but know that I’m not going anywhere.’”

“Then, when they wrote about his conversation with Ferrari, he said, ‘Toto, I’m not carrying out any negotiations. There was never an inch of doubt in my mind.’”

Lewis, you really should’ve had some doubts. The LH Army is not happy.

Mercedes is lucky to have Hamilton. The team knows it, and Toto Wolff knows it. The thing is, Hamilton feels he’s lucky to have Mercedes, too, despite everything that’s transpired over the past couple of years. Despite everything, he stayed loyal to Mercedes. Does Mercedes deserve him?

Wolff has insisted multiple times that Russell is the future of the team. Yes, there’s no doubt that the young Brit is the future, but does that warrant sidelining Hamilton completely? Because that’s what fans feel Mercedes is doing. He showed his loyalty to the team. Why isn’t Mercedes doing the same?

Speaking about Russell, he’s become the LH Army’s public enemy No.1. Instead of Lewis leaving Mercedes, why doesn’t George go?

If possible, could Hamilton actually go to Ferrari until Mercedes sacks Russell? 

Considering the prolonged negotiations, Hamilton should’ve extended them further just to make Mercedes work for it and realize his worth.

Honestly, Hamilton, do you think giving Ferrari nothing more than a glance was the right way to go? Because your fans certainly don’t. 

What’s your take? Should Lewis Hamilton have taken that meeting with John Elkann more seriously?

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