Lewis Hamilton: Toto Wolff says money not a factor in driver negotiations

Lewis Hamilton

Wolff: Money not a factor in Hamilton negotiations

Lewis' contract expires at the end of the 2020 season

Martin Macdonald

Tuesday 3 March 2020 12:43

Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff insists that money is not a factor in the negotiations between the team and Lewis Hamilton with regards to the driver’s potential contract extension.

At the moment, Hamilton will be free to talk to another team, or indeed leave F1, at the conclusion of the 2020 F1 season should he choose.

Both the six-time world champion and Mercedes have played down speculation that this will happen, though, with Hamilton expected to sign a new deal sooner or later.

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As time goes on, uncertainty will develop, but one thing is for sure, according to Wolff - negotiations wont be affected by monetary factors.

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"Of course every driver wants to get the best possible contract out of the negotiations, but money will never be a determining factor in our conversations,” Wolff told Bild.

“Lewis, of course, knows that we are undergoing a major transformation with Daimler's entire electrical process and it is also much more important for Lewis that he has a fast car.”

Hamilton, meanwhile, said recently he was not in any hurry to sign a new deal.

"We haven't sat down and talked yet," he revealed.

"It's crazy because there is all of this talk in the media and everything.

"I have a certain approach normally, in a way that I don't stress. I trust Toto and we have that trust between us. We've told each other what our goals are and what our aims are and our commitments.

"So I don't ever feel there's necessarily always a rush. Sometimes Toto is like, 'Is everything okay?' so we just always keep the channel open, and I'm sure in the near future we will start to sit down, but I don't feel stressed."

Should Hamilton not sign a new deal with Mercedes, there has been continuous speculation that he could favour a switch to Ferrari for one last big move before he retires.