Hamilton extends F1 career with Mercedes deal

MONZA, Italy — Lewis Hamilton will remain in Formula One until at least 2025 after signing a new multiyear deal with Mercedes, with teammate George Russell also getting an extension to the same date.

The news puts an end to months of speculation about the future for Hamilton, whose existing contract was due to expire at the end of 2023.

Although the seven-time world champion always maintained he would remain at Mercedes, in the past year speculation has linked him to a switch to Ferrari as well as the possibility of retiring from the sport altogether.

In recent months, he has insisted the new contract was simply a matter of time and has frequently doubled down on his desire to fight for another championship with the team.

Hamilton won his seventh Formula One title in 2020, but after losing out to Max Verstappen in one of the closest championship battles of all time in 2021, Mercedes has been unable to provide him with a car capable of reclaiming his crown over the past two years.

Hamilton is top of F1’s career winners’ list with 103 race victories.

Russell, who has been aligned to Mercedes as a junior driver since 2017 and has been driving for the team since the start of last year, was expected to remain at the team in 2024, but confirmation of his deal underlines the team’s commitment to him as a long-term prospect.

Thirteen years divide Hamilton and Russell in age, with Hamilton, at 38, the second-oldest F1 driver on the grid, behind only 42-year-old Fernando Alonso.

Source: www.espn.com