Lewis Hamilton looks set to prove Martin Brundle and Ted Kravitz wrong after the pair both predicted the seven-time champion could quit F1. The pundits thought Hamilton was likely to walk away if he was not competitive at Mercedes but the Briton has since hinted he may be ready to sign a contract extension.
Brundle suggested that if Hamilton was unable to fight for the title he may have stopped enjoying the sport and been enticed to walk away. Speaking ahead of the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, Brundle said: “As long as he’s still enjoying the bits around F1 or he can tolerate those bits around F1 and balance it out with just loving driving the car, [he’ll stay].
“[But] if he goes through the whole year and Mercedes are third fastest and others are catching them up, then I suspect he’ll take a different view and my enjoyment analogy will play out in that he won’t be enjoying it anymore.” Meanwhile, Kravitz claimed Hamilton was “thinking about the future” after struggling at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix.
His comments came after Hamilton finished outside the points in 13th, just weeks after finishing 10th in Jeddah.
READ MORE: Lewis Hamilton backed to keep at-risk 15 year F1 record
The Mercedes driver has now scored six podium finishes this season including five consecutive between Canada and Hungary. He also came close to winning the Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort and looked on the pace at the British Grand Prix.
Addressing his own future, Hamilton admitted he had thought about “extending” his contract as he “still loves driving”. Speaking ahead of the Italian Grand Prix, the seven-time champion also claimed he could stay at Mercedes for another 100 races.
He told Canal+: “As crazy as it is, 300 is such a huge number of races, yet I feel young and fresh. I still feel just as energised as I was five years ago. It’s just a number. I could go to 400 probably.”
For all the latest Sports News Click Here
For the latest news and updates, follow us on Google News.
