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MERCEDES team principal Toto Wolff has said the team are “100 per cent committed” to keeping Lewis Hamilton.Wolff also expects to see the former world champion chase a record eighth Formula One title next year.
Lewis Hamilton is currently enjoying some down time before the Miami GP this weekendCredit: Getty
Toto Wolff wants Hamilton to stay beyond this year
This confirmation of commitment to Hamilton comes as rumours are flying around the F1 paddock.
There are even some suggestions that Hamilton could perhaps walk away from the sport altogether.
However, these have been denied by the Brit.
There has also been speculation that Mercedes will make a move to steal Charles Leclerc from Ferrari.
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Indeed, gossip emerged that Leclerc and Hamilton could swap places next year.
However, these have also been put to bed.
Ferrari are currently in a better place than Mercedes car wise, and so Leclerc will remain “fully committed” to the Italian team.
The Ferrari poster-boy took his first pole of the season with an impressive performance in the new qualifying format at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix  last weekend.
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When asked about Leclerc, Wolff said: “I think he’s 100 per cent committed and loyal to Ferrari and it’s his contract.
“And in the same way we are 100 per cent committed to putting pen to paper with Lewis.”
Wolff added that no conversations had taken place between Mercedes and Ferrari.
When pressed on the subject, the Austrian executive responded that the press ‘want that headline’.
Hamilton will be 39 next year and has not won a race since the December 2021 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.
His team have since fallen behind the dominant Red Bull.
The seven-time world champion’s contract with Mercedes is set to expire at the end of the season, but Wolff has now indirectly declared that the team will offer him an extension.
Discussions about next year will likely come down to Mercedes’ ability to provide Hamilton with a car capable of truly challenging the Red Bull drivers.
The Mercedes boss added to formula1.com: “That is what it looks like at the moment, and we just need to give him a car that can do that.
“And hopefully we can get our package to a winning package this season and have something that can bring him his eighth title, and no doubt he is motivated to achieve this.

“That’s something he wants to do, that’s his ability, we have a great relationship personally.
“And with the team he’s been a strong pillar over the last 10 years, so we are in a really good place”. More

SIR LEWIS HAMILTON proved his talents do not lay just on the race track as he showed off some basketball skills in Miami. Hamilton is in Florida for the weekend’s Miami Grand Prix and enjoyed a day on the court during an event sponsored by watch company IWC.
Sir Lewis Hamilton during the IWC Chrono ChallengeCredit: Getty
Jagger Eaton, Simu Liu, Brandon Okpalobi, Lewis Hamilton, James Marsden and Antrel RolleCredit: Getty
Lewis Hamilton showed off his basketball skillsCredit: Getty
The Formula One legend was seen shooting hoops with other IWC-sponsored celebrities – including Hollywood’s James Marsden and Simu Liu.
Hamilton, 38, is in his 17th successive F1 season and currently trails way behind Max Verstappen in the points leaderboard.
The Mercedes driver went the entire year without claiming a Grand Prix victory for the first time since his debut way back in 2007.
But after the Azerbaijan Grand Prix on April 30, he admitted that he still has “that drive” to race.
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His contract with Merc is set to expire at the end of the season, with discussions over an extension ongoing.
He said: “I am focused on being better every day, and to be honest I am focused on the long term.
“I am going to be here for some time, longer than one year.
“Still got that drive, still got that push and still want to do and I love what I do.”
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Hamilton finished 6th in Baku and is currently 4th in the Driver Standings with 48 points, 45 behind leader Verstappen.
Former world champion, Jenson Button believes that Hamilton will keep on going as he is still “hungry to win”.
He told Sky Sports:  “I don’t think Lewis is going to walk away from the sport.
“As a racing driver, if you’ve been winning for so long and then you’re suddenly not, you want to fight back to winning – so you’re not going to retire.
“Or, to come at it another way, if you’re in a bad car for many years, you want to retire – because it just gets you down.
“But Lewis is not in a bad car, he’s just in a car that is not as good as what he is used to.
“He knows the strength of the team, he knows how quick he is still and they’re going to work together to get back to fighting with Red Bull. And I think they will.
“It probably won’t be this year. But in 2024, I think we see Lewis on the grid. He’s still hungry to win another world championship.”
Lewis Hamilton is set to return to the track at the Miami GPCredit: Getty More

LEWIS HAMILTON has revealed that he is planning on staying with Mercedes.The F1 star had previously hinted at retiring from the motorsport but is still determined to win his eighth world title.
There had been rumours that Lewis Hamilton would retire from F1Credit: Splash
But Hamilton has now hinted at extending his F1 career
The Mercedes driver, 38, is in his 17th successive Formula 1 season and is way behind Max Verstappen in the points leaderboard.
The Brit went the entire year without claiming a Grand Prix victory for the first time since his debut way back in 2007.
But after the Azerbaijan Grand Prix on April 30, he admitted that he still has “that drive” to race.
His contract with Mercedes is set to expire at the end of the season, with discussions over an extension ongoing.
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He said: “I am focused on being better every day, and to be honest I am focused on the long term.
“I am going to be here for some time, longer than one year.
“Still got that drive, still got that push and still want to do and I love what I do.”
Hamilton finished 6th in Baku and is currently 4th in the Driver Standings with 48 points, 45 behind leader Verstappen.
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Former world champion, Jenson Button believes that Hamilton will keep on going as he is still “hungry to win”.
He told Sky Sports:  “I don’t think Lewis is going to walk away from the sport.
“As a racing driver, if you’ve been winning for so long and then you’re suddenly not, you want to fight back to winning – so you’re not going to retire.
“Or, to come at it another way, if you’re in a bad car for many years, you want to retire – because it just gets you down.
“But Lewis is not in a bad car, he’s just in a car that is not as good as what he is used to.
“He knows the strength of the team, he knows how quick he is still and they’re going to work together to get back to fighting with Red Bull. And I think they will.
“It probably won’t be this year. But in 2024, I think we see Lewis on the grid. He’s still hungry to win another world championship.” More

TOTO WOLFF has announced a shock career move amid Mercedes’ struggles on the track.For the last two-and-half years, Mercedes have played second fiddle to Red Bull and Dutch phenom Max Verstappen.
Lewis Hamilton and Toto Wolff have struggled to deliver Mercedes success as of lateCredit: Rex
Team Principal Wolff has taken up a teaching role with Havard UniversityCredit: REX
Wolff and the rest of the Mercedes team, however, have been hard at work trying to end Verstappen’s recent dominance.
But the Austrian has also had one eye on educating university students in America.
It was announced this week that Wolff will teach an MBA course at Harvard’s prestigious Business School.
Wolff – who recently became a billionaire – has now become an Executive Fellow and guest lecturer at the Ivy League school.
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A proud-as-punch Wolff said: “I feel very honoured and privileged to continue working with the incredibly bright young minds at Harvard.
“Whenever I step on campus, I am inspired by the students’ curiosity and ambition, and I leave energised by the special learning environment they create together with the brilliant faculty.”
Professor Anita Elberse – who will teach the course in along with Wolff – said: “We very much look forward to welcoming Toto back to campus.
“I have seen first-hand how much our students benefit from learning about Toto’s leadership journey and from his deep knowledge of what it takes to run a highly successful sports team.
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“With Toto on board, I am confident that we can make a profound positive difference in the development of the leaders of tomorrow.”
Chair of the Practice Faculty Len Schlesinger said: “HBS is fortunate to be able to benefit from this dynamic partnership of Anita and Toto.
“I am confident it will be a spectacular experience for the students.”
The F1 season resumes action on Sunday evening with the eagerly-anticipated Miami Grand Prix. More

TOTO WOLFF has given a bleak prediction over Lewis Hamilton’s title prospects even after Mercedes bring in major upgrades. The struggling team have earmarked the race at Imola at the end of May to bring in developments.
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is planning big upgrades to make Mercedes more competitiveCredit: Reuters
Team principal Wolff is hoping to cut the gap to the dominant Red Bull team who have won all four races this season at a canter.
But the Austrian boss has warned fans that improvements will not automatically make Hamilton and teammate George Russell title contenders.
Hamilton’s podium at the chaotic Australian Grand Prix is the sole top three finish the team can boast this season.
And following this weekend’s Azerbaijan Grand Prix, Wolff said: “The target [for the upgrade] is Imola but I need to manage everybody’s expectations.
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“We are talking so much about the upgrade but we are not going to put it down on the track and drive circles around Red Bull.”
He added that the result’s from the Baku race has demonstrated the gap between Red Bull and the rest of the field, with Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc finishing 21 seconds behind winner Sergio Perez.
The 51-year-old said: “Over 40 racing laps – that’s half a second a lap. At least we saw that they [Red Bull] were pushing today, but half-a-second is quite a long way to go.
“We basically have two cars that are sailing off into the sunset on merit. We either have to do a better job, all of us together, to catch them up, or change the regulations.”
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“And I don’t think we should be doing the second. We have to win on merit and that means being more clever.”
The now famous 2021 season saw Hamilton and Max Verstappen go head-to-head in machinery of a similar level, while the 2022 campaign saw Ferrari and Mercedes occasionally able to challenge Red Bull on pace.

This campaign appears altogether different with Red Bull so far ahead of the field.
Perez and Verstappen have two race wins each while Perez also won the revamped sprint in Azerbaijan. More

LEWIS HAMILTON has admitted his Azerbaijan Grand Prix was a frustrating one, but insisted his recovery showed his “hunger” remains. Hamilton, 38, was running in the top five before a safety car caused him to lose places due to him pitting in green flag conditions shortly before.
Lewis Hamilton finished P6 in Sunday’s Azerbaijan Grand PrixCredit: Getty
And Hamilton admitted his weekend was frustratingCredit: Rex
The seven-time champion saw himself sent back to 10th place as rivals took advantage of the cheap pit stop offered by the safety car.
The Brit managed to fight back up to P6 and finish within a second of Carlos Sainz in fifth.
He was clearly left annoyed by the unlucky timing of the safety car but opted to focus on the positives from his drive.
Speaking after the race, Hamilton said: “So much work goes into the weekend and then yesterday (Saturday) was a difficult day where you went backwards, and then today (Sunday) I was hoping for a better day and I lost so many places, that’s definitely a kick in the teeth.
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“But then I was like, ‘well, it is what it is’. I think today shows that the hunger is there.
“And once I get that confidence in that car, the pace will come out.
“I couldn’t get bogged down in that frustration and [thinking] ‘I’ve lost all those positions’. I just had to keep my head down and get focused on attacking, and that’s what I did.
“I got my head down and got right back in the race. Yeah, I really enjoyed those battles. Really continuously proud of my team for just keeping their head down.
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“We didn’t have the pace that we had in the last race, which is obviously not the greatest. But there’s no lack of motivation in this team.
“We’re all super hungry, we’re just working towards getting those upgrades. So I think this is the beginning of something hopefully better in the next coming races.”
Hamilton’s future beyond the end of the season was cast into further doubt after Mercedes boss Toto Wolff admitted Charles Leclerc was on their “radar” as a possible replacement.
However, Wolff also insisted the team was committed to penning a new deal with Hamilton.
Sergio Perez collected wins in both the Sprint Race and full race on Sunday to move him to within six points of championship leader Max Verstappen.
Like Hamilton, Verstappen was another unfortunate victim of the safety car’s timing on Sunday, and had seen his weekend get spicy after a coming together with George Russell during the Sprint.

Complete F1 2023 race calendar – details on every Grand Prix this year More