13 September 2023 , 08:07
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Mercedes avoided a "big problem" when Lewis Hamilton put pen to paper on his new contract.
The 38-year-old has committed to at least two more seasons racing for the Silver Arrows and in Formula 1. It means he will be just a few weeks shy of his 41st birthday when this current deal ends.
George Russell also signed a new contract which means Mercedes' driver line-up is locked in until the end of 2025. It's one less thing to worry about for team principal Toto Wolff, who can focus purely on the team's performance for a while now.
The Austrian was locked in negotiations with Hamilton's entourage for months over a deal which took longer than expected to finalise. So his former driver Nico Rosberg thinks Wolff will be a very relieved man to get it over the line.
"I think just stability, calmness because it always leads to uncertainty even in the leadership, 'Ah, Lewis has not signed yet'," he told Sky Sports. It puts stress, stress because what if Lewis suddenly decides, 'I actually prefer to go surfing at the beach'?
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"That would be a big problem then. So it does put stress, especially probably on someone like Toto, even though he wouldn't show it because he's an incredibly good negotiator, and pretty cold, but inside it certainly put stress."
Given both Hamilton and Wolff publicly declared their respective desires to get a deal done, it was a surprise that it took so long. While big-ticket items like salary and the length of a contract are often the main sticking points, the Austrian has explained that, in this case, it was the minutiae which cause the delay.
He said: "Lewis and I were clear on the major terms in June, July. Things were just dribbling along, bubbling along slowly. Then it was summer break. In the end, it was about marketing – not really the big relevant topics. That took a bit of time."
That explanation confirmed a theory posed by David Coulthard, who had said: "Mercedes will want a certain amount of time from Lewis for their partners. Mercedes will have sold sponsorship on obtaining access to their drivers. Some businesses will have signed up with the Silver Arrows because Lewis is there, rather than George Russell.
"Perhaps Lewis might be wanting to do fewer days or have fewer commitments? What Lewis will be signing up for goes way beyond him driving at a Grand Prix. It's about what rights he retains in terms of his image, and what rights he sells to the team. Mercedes are buying more than just Lewis' driving services. They are buying his promotional image and his PR image."