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via Reuters

via Reuters

The weekend that was supposed to entirely be about Ferrari is now going to be headlined by Lewis Hamilton. Ahead of the Italian GP, the 7x champion has announced his contract extension with Mercedes that will end at the end of 2025. This history-making deal will help him pocket $127 million. At such a joyous moment for the Briton, his compatriot, Lando Norris has expressed his true feelings about the deal and the significant impact it will have on Formula 1.

Ever since McLaren joined Mercedes at the front fighting for podiums, either Hamilton or Norris has been a common face in the Top 3. While the W14 is not allowing Hamilton to remain consistent, McLaren‘s MCL60 is proving to be a boon for Norris. Hamilton signing this contract means that Norris, who as a kid, looked up to the 7-time champion will get more time going wheel-to-wheel with the legend.

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Commenting on the big news, Norris said, “It’s great. It’s always a pleasure to race against him. It’s a cool thing to race against someone who’s one of the best drivers ever in F1 who’s creating a lot of history. He is someone I looked up to when I was a little kid. I’m happy.”

Read More: Moments After Hamilton Renews Mercedes Contract, Verstappen Makes Shocking Revelation About F1 Future

It is delightful to witness the fans within Norris take control and not give precedence to their rivalry. But his dreams of battling Hamilton might remain a dream, judging by a former British F1 racer’s comments.

Martin Brundle trashes Mercedes’ chances of providing Lewis Hamilton with a championship-winning car

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Lewis Hamilton has always been destined to win multiple World Championships. But in the last year and a half, the Silver Arrows haven’t let him have a continuous period of peace. There has always been some or the other concern with their car owing to which he looks like an underperformer. And as per Martin Brundle, his stay at Brackley after this contract renewal isn’t going to be any different.

via Imago

Brundle said, “Well, it could’ve been this car. Because they’ve had one and a half seasons of trouble trying to make it work, trying to make it talk to the drivers and be predictable but it just isn’t. Occasionally, they’re showing unbelievable pace but they don’t seem to have a good understandable platform.”

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Only one of the following two situations can happen. Either Mercedes picks up their pace and Norris gets more time with his hero. Or Brundle’s statements come true and Hamilton eventually retires having achieved nothing more than his current triumphs.

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