Lewis Hamilton Reveals Advice he Would Give Max Verstappen for Mercedes

Newsweek

5 hours ago

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Seven-time Formula One world champion Lewis Hamilton has opened up on the advice he would give Max Verstappen about his former team, Mercedes, considering the rumors about Verstappen's ongoing talks with the Brackley-based outfit.
The speculation erupted after George Russell revealed that discussions on his Mercedes contract extension were delayed due to ongoing talks between Mercedes and the four-time world champion. Notably, Russell's Mercedes contract is set to expire at the end of this year.
Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff acknowledged the interest in having Verstappen on board his team but revealed a very low probability of a move happening next year. Wolff emphasized that Russell and Kimi Antonelli would continue racing for Mercedes in 2026, but he didn't hesitate to admit that Verstappen would remain on his radar for the long-term future.
Lewis Hamilton of Great Britain and Ferrari speaks with Max Verstappen of Netherlands and Oracle Red Bull Racing in Parc ferme during the Sprint/qualifying ahead of the F1 Grand Prix of China at Shanghai International...
Lewis Hamilton of Great Britain and Ferrari speaks with Max Verstappen of Netherlands and Oracle Red Bull Racing in Parc ferme during the Sprint/qualifying ahead of the F1 Grand Prix of China at Shanghai International Circuit on March 22, 2025 in Shanghai, China. MoreWith Russell yet to sign an extension, speculation about Verstappen's potential Mercedes switch continues to swirl. As F1 heads to Silverstone for the British Grand Prix this weekend, Hamilton was asked if he would recommend Verstappen to join Mercedes if he were asked for his opinion. The 40-year-old driver gave a positive reply and remarked that he would be interested to see what unfolds in the future. He said:
"Of course. If someone, anyone, was going to ask me about Mercedes, it's an amazing team also with the passion, they've got great personnel, it's a great factory, great environment to work in.
"I'll be interested to see what happens."
Hamilton didn't hold himself back from praising Red Bull, and explained how he had misunderstood the team many years ago when he was a staunch Mercedes fan. He added:
"I mean, he's coming from a great team and I think many, many years ago I was asked [about Red Bull], I think I was just so diehard Mercedes at the time, and I remember saying something about Red Bull being only a drinks company.
"I always regretted it because I was just saying that because Mercedes at the time was just great. I was really just trying to gee up my team, but the truth is Red Bull have been an incredible team.
"There's so many people there that are exceptional and they've dominated for years."
Speaking on his home race this weekend, Hamilton admitted he was looking forward to the Silverstone magic with hopes of securing his first podium finish of the season. He said:
"I'm hoping and praying, yes. There's always magic here in Silverstone, so I don't really have to hope for that in the sense that the crowd is incredible.
"It's a very, very, very special place. And it always provides a special race, one way or the other. But I'm hoping that whether all sorts of things can help us, because we're obviously naturally not as strong as we used to be."