Hamilton Would Have Stayed With Mercedes If 8th Title Was Possible Says Hill
F1Friday, 02 February 2024 at 02:00
Formula 1 World Champion Damon Hill asserted he believes Lewis Hamilton would have stayed with Mercedes had he believed the team had a chance to fight for the Championship.
While it has become a bit of a trend these days for the best drivers to stay committed to their teams and try to win the Championship with them, it has not been the case in F1 for a long time.
Nowadays, we see Charles Leclerc sign a long-term contract with Ferrari, Max Verstappen being locked by Red Bull until 2028, and Lando Norris's multi-year deal with McLaren two years ahead of his current contract expiration.
However, Lewis Hamilton, who has been with Mercedes for an incredible 11 years, broke this trend when he signed a contract with Ferrari out of nowhere today.
This is one of the most unexpected moves in a long time. Firstly, because the seven-time World Champion has been with the team for so long, and secondly, because Mercedes seemed to be one of the most probable contenders for the Championship title.
Formula 1 World Champion Damon Hill asserted he believes this suggests Mercedes hasn't made too much progress with their current car. According to Sky Sports, he said:
"I think if Lewis genuinely thought his eighth title was guaranteed, or there was a good 50/50 chance of it happening at Mercedes, he would have stayed."
On the other hand, it might also be that Ferrari has found something that will allow them to compete for the Championship in the upcoming two seasons. One thing is sure: the 39-year-old didn't go to Ferrari because of money. Former F1 driver continued:
"He has got to the point where probably he has heard the same music coming out of Mercedes for a few too many seasons and has started to think, 'I need to invigorate my final few seasons in F1'."
It is a dream of almost every F1 driver to race for Ferrari for at least one season. As Sebastian Vettel said, everyone is a Ferrari fan, even if they say they are not. Hill added:
"What better way to do it than to drive for Ferrari? If it goes wrong, he'll think, 'at least I tried."
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