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Mercedes insider says Lewis Hamilton now has a ‘very clear’ idea of ​​when he will retire from Formula 1

Posted on by Bobb
Mercedes insider says Lewis Hamilton now has a ‘very clear’ idea of ​​when he will retire from Formula 1

Lewis Hamilton is the second most experienced driver on the Formula 1 grid. He recently made his 350th Grand Prix start and a move to Ferrari should take him beyond 400.

Only Fernando Alonso, who will make his 400th start in Qatar next month, surpasses this figure among active drivers. Hamilton will overtake Kimi Raikkonen to become second on the all-time list in Las Vegas.

He has competed in the last 18 Formula One seasons, winning Grand Prix in 16 of them and finishing on the podium in each of them. Alonso missed two of those campaigns between his first retirement and his return to Alpine in 2021.

Lewis Hamilton of Great Britain and Mercedes walks the pit lane during practice/sprint qualifying ahead of the Formula 1 Brazilian Grand Prix at the...
Photo by Kim Illman/Getty Images

Hamilton has signed an initial two-year contract with Ferrari. This will allow him to remain in the sport until the next major rule change in 2026.

There is also an option for a third year, but this will depend on whether both parties are still satisfied with the agreement. Hamilton will turn 40 this winter.

He is motivated by his desire for an unprecedented eighth World Championship. Only three drivers have ever won the title at the age of 40, and the last of them was Jack Brabham in 1966.

Lewis Hamilton ‘knows’ when his Formula 1 career will end, says Mercedes insider

Author Matt Wyman wrote a book called Inside the Mercedes F1: Life in the Fast Lane. As part of this process, he had the opportunity to speak with Hamilton, as well as other key team figures.

And in an interview with the magazine MirrorHe said the 105-time race winner felt like he knew exactly when he was going to retire. His move to Ferrari is part of a carefully thought-out plan for the remainder of his career.

He didn’t want to leave Formula 1 with any regrets, so he made his dream come true in Maranello. Fred Vasseur, who used to compete in junior formulas, says Hamilton spoke about Ferrari in 2004.

“He knows when the end of his career is,” Wyman said. “He has a very clear plan.

“He said that the fact that he won all these races with Mercedes and came this far is really important to him. The only thing he didn’t do, and he just thought, “I don’t want to go and quit, I wish I could do this.”

The favorite to replace Lewis Hamilton at Ferrari is already obvious

One would expect Hamilton to retire in either 2026 or 2027. Alonso may be racing until he’s 45, but it’s unlikely his old McLaren teammate will last that long.

If he manages to win his eighth title in the next couple of years, he can retire feeling like his career is over. Conversely, if it struggles, as it has for much of 2024, then Ferrari may decide to move on on its own.

The obvious candidate to replace Hamilton would be Oliver Birman. If he spends a couple of seasons at Haas, the academy driver should step up like Charles Leclerc did.

Mercedes have already backed a young talent to replace a legendary figure, in their case Bearman’s PREMA teammate Kimi Antonelli. However, Carlos Sainz could also return to Ferrari one day when both parties parted on good terms.

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