Did Ferrari make an offer for Hamilton?

Lewis Hamilton teased a potential offer from Ferrari after it was confirmed that he will remain with Mercedes up to the end of 2020 ahead of the German Grand Prix. Question marks had been raised over Hamilton's future with the Silver Arrows as an announcement was delayed, and the world champion reveals he was approached by a rival team.

Hamilton has spoken of his desire as a young driver to drive for Ferrari in the past and brief rumours earlier this year suggested that he could be involved in a swap deal for Sebastian Vettel.

However, Hamilton said when the call came from a rival squad, he did not consider it.

He said: "In terms of the other guys approaching, one did, but I didn't give it any air."

When asked if that team was Ferrari, he replied: "You can make whatever assumption that you want!"

Hamilton had been expected to sign a new deal in pre-season but it is only ahead of the 11th race of 2018 that he has put pen to paper.

"I just kept delaying it," he explained. "I had a contract in place, I just didn't feel like I had to rush. Eventually, we sat down at home and got through it real quick."

Hamilton hailed the patience shown by team boss Toto Wolff as he kept pushing back confirmation.

"Most people would not have been given the time-frame I chose to take, but the one thing that shows is the trust we have between each other," he said.

"I said from day one 'I am not looking anywhere else… I'm not talking to anyone else. I am not investigating to see what other options there are. I'm not playing you against anybody else. While I know there are drivers calling you, which I expect, I also trust you are not thinking to do anything else. So, we can take our time'."