LEWIS HAMILTON is set for a bumper £4million bonus if he wins the F1 world title on Sunday.
The Mercedes ace is chasing an eighth crown which would move him clear of the joint-record he currently holds with Michael Schumacher.
Hamilton earns around £40m a year from his deal with the Silver Arrows but has the potential to boost his wage packet if he beats Max Verstappen in the season finale on Sunday.
The Brit who was last estimated to be worth £244m in last year’s rich-list – a figure he will smash this season propped up by race-win bonuses, plus some shrewd business investments.
Hamilton, who was listed as the eighth-highest earning sports star by Forbes, has also just sold a New York penthouse apartment for £37m despite never moving in.
If he wins the F1 title on Sunday, he will also unlock an incredible £17.5m windfall for Mercedes staff.
The 1,000 employees at his team’s Brackley HQ, plus another 750 staff at their engine plant in Brixworth, will all be eligible for a bonus of at least £10,000 EACH.
Meanwhile, Verstappen is estimated to be worth around £46m with a salary at Red Bull of £18.2m a year.
@font-face{font-family:’The Sun’;src:url(‘/assets/fonts/the-sun/TheSun-Regular.woff2’) format(‘woff2’),url(‘/assets/fonts/the-sun/TheSun-Regular.woff’) format(‘woff’),url(‘/assets/fonts/the-sun/TheSun-Regular.ttf’) format(‘truetype’),url(‘/assets/fonts/the-sun/TheSun-Regular.svg#’) format(‘svg’);font-style:normal;font-weight:400;font-display:swap;}@font-face{font-family:’The Sun’;src:url(‘/assets/fonts/the-sun/TheSun-Medium.woff2’) format(‘woff2’),url(‘/assets/fonts/the-sun/TheSun-Medium.woff’) format(‘woff’),url(‘/assets/fonts/the-sun/TheSun-Medium.ttf’) format(‘truetype’),url(‘/assets/fonts/the-sun/TheSun-Medium.svg#’) format(‘svg’);font-style:normal;font-weight:500;font-display:swap;}@font-face{font-family:’The Sun’;src:url(‘/assets/fonts/the-sun/TheSun-HeavyNarrow.woff2’) format(‘woff2’),url(‘/assets/fonts/the-sun/TheSun-HeavyNarrow.woff’) format(‘woff’),url(‘/assets/fonts/the-sun/TheSun-HeavyNarrow.ttf’) format(‘truetype’),url(‘/assets/fonts/the-sun/TheSun-HeavyNarrow.svg#’) format(‘svg’);font-style:normal;font-weight:400;font-stretch:semi-condensed;font-display:swap;}@font-face{font-family:’The Sun’;src:url(‘/assets/fonts/the-sun/TheSun-Bold.woff2’) format(‘woff2’),url(‘/assets/fonts/the-sun/TheSun-Bold.woff’) format(‘woff’),url(‘/assets/fonts/the-sun/TheSun-Bold.ttf’) format(‘truetype’),url(‘/assets/fonts/the-sun/TheSun-Bold.svg#’) format(‘svg’);font-style:normal;font-weight:700;font-stretch:normal;font-display:swap;}@font-face{font-family:’The Sun’;src:url(‘/assets/fonts/the-sun/TheSun-HeavyNarrow.woff2’) format(‘woff2’),url(‘/assets/fonts/the-sun/TheSun-HeavyNarrow.woff’) format(‘woff’),url(‘/assets/fonts/the-sun/TheSun-HeavyNarrow.ttf’) format(‘truetype’),url(‘/assets/fonts/the-sun/TheSun-HeavyNarrow.svg#’) format(‘svg’);font-style:normal;font-weight:700;font-stretch:condensed;font-display:swap;}.css-qu9fel{border-top:1px solid #dcdddd;}.css-b9nmbi{margin-bottom:16px;border-top:1px solid #dcdddd;}
Most read in Motorsport
.css-1gojmfd{margin-bottom:16px;}
JOIN SUN VEGAS: GET A FREE £10 BONUS WITH 100s OF GAMES TO PLAY AND NO DEPOSIT REQUIRED (Ts&Cs apply)
The 24-year-old however, boosts his earnings through a private sponsorship with Dutch supermarket chain Jumbo.
He also has lucrative deals with clothing brand G-Star and online car dealers, CarNext.
Meanwhile, Hamilton will have to be on his best behaviour or risk facing a 10-PLACE grid penalty for this weekend’s Abu Dhabi showdown.
The Brit has picked up two reprimands in the past three races and one more would trigger the huge sanction.
Hamilton was given a reprimand in Mexico for unsafely rejoining the track during first practice.
And he was also ticked off in Saudi Arabia for blocking Haas’ Nikita Mazepin at high speed through the first sector in final practice.
If he is penalised in any of the three practice sessions or qualifying in Abu Dhabi, he could be hit with a hammer blow to his title hopes.
Source: Motorsport - thesun.co.uk