Hamilton remains at Mercedes
MONACO: Double Formula One world champion Lewis Hamilton has agreed a new three-year contract that will keep him at Mercedes until the end of 2018, the team announced yesterday.
Although no financial details were given, media reports have suggested the Briton is in line for a bumper pay packet amounting to more than $40 million (R480m) a year.
“Mercedes is my home and I couldn’t be happier to be staying here for another three years,” the 30-year-old said in a statement that ended any talk of a move to rivals Ferrari in the near future.
Hamilton, who has a 20point lead over teammate Nico Rosberg in the championship after five races, is already one of the highest earners in the sport.
This is along with Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel and McLaren’s Fernando Alonso.
German driver Rosberg, who is chasing a third successive Monaco Grand Prix win this weekend, agreed his own multiyear contract extension last July.
Hamilton’s new deal ends months of uncertainty about his future.
Speculation had swirled since the middle of last year, and it increased despite repeated assurances that all was on track.
The champion has dispensed with a manager and has been conducting much of the negotiations, and reading through contracts, himself.
Hamilton, who won his first title with McLaren in 2008, has been backed by Mercedes since his teenage years. All of his 36 grand prix wins have been with the German manufacturer’s engines.
Fifteen of those victories, including 11 last year, have been for the Mercedes works team. – Reuters