Whats Lewis waiting for?
Discussion
Its clear Lewis is holding out to see how well the McLarens go in testing and possibly even the first few races before he commits to Mercedes, I could understand him and the team putting it off till the season was over and title was decided saying no rush and they would look at it in the closed season - they said so themselves, well the seasons finished, Lewis is champ so what is he waiting for?
Vaud said:
Let's see..
Your contract is up for renewal.
You are reigning WDC in the best car (at the moment)
Your primary rivals (ALO, VET, maybe RIC) are tied up in multi year contracts.
How many cards do you hold?
...Your driver's contract is up for renewal.Your contract is up for renewal.
You are reigning WDC in the best car (at the moment)
Your primary rivals (ALO, VET, maybe RIC) are tied up in multi year contracts.
How many cards do you hold?
..You are the reigning world champions.
..Your cars are 2 seconds a lap faster than anyone else.
..Every driver on the grid wants to race in your car.
How many cards do you hold?
I'm sure they'll work it out. Or not. It'll give us something to talk about besides money / lack of it / cars not racing, which is nice =)
Why should e sign now?
He is a double world champion driving in a team with a highly rated other driver. He has every chance of being a triple world champion at the end of the year,
At the end of the year Mercedes can take Alonso who is older than Hamilton and failed to make his advantage clear when they were both at McLaren or they can tan Hamiliton who is likely to have won his 3rd world championship.
If Mercedes say no Honda or Renault will want him.
He is a double world champion driving in a team with a highly rated other driver. He has every chance of being a triple world champion at the end of the year,
At the end of the year Mercedes can take Alonso who is older than Hamilton and failed to make his advantage clear when they were both at McLaren or they can tan Hamiliton who is likely to have won his 3rd world championship.
If Mercedes say no Honda or Renault will want him.
It will be down to his winning bonus clause, private sponsor issues, required public appearances, travel agenda and what he can and cannot do outside of GP weekends. F1 drivers contracts are hugely complex documents, lawyers arguing over the wording and what pays what to who and when. Don't expect an answer quickly. Lewis will have his own ideas and does have advisors who want their pound of flesh too.
Tony 1234 said:
BritishRacinGrin said:
Yes he did, five times.
Are you counting the time he cheated to win ie Monaco, and also the DNF's by Lewis?
Clearly it's a two horse race. If Hamilton goes and is replaced by someone cheaper, Rosberg will simply win the WDC instead and Mercedes will get the constructors. Hamilton needs Mercedes more than Mercedes needs Hamilton IMO. Sure, plenty of teams would move heaven and earth to get Hamilton on board but none of them are going to be able to give him the 2015 WDC.
belleair302 said:
It will be down to his winning bonus clause, private sponsor issues, required public appearances, travel agenda and what he can and cannot do outside of GP weekends. F1 drivers contracts are hugely complex documents, lawyers arguing over the wording and what pays what to who and when. Don't expect an answer quickly. Lewis will have his own ideas and does have advisors who want their pound of flesh too.
I though he had taken a leaf from Sebastian's book and was negotiating directly?He only started talking about it with the team last week at the first test...funnily enough these multi-million pound contracts aren't bashed out in a day when there isn't a rush. Lewis is also negotiating on his own for the first time, so is probably not jumping into anything too quickly.
I'm guessing it'll be done before the start of the season...or at the very latest Race 3-4.
I'm guessing it'll be done before the start of the season...or at the very latest Race 3-4.
I think Lewis at this point of his career is the best driver in the current lineup.
Having said that, when it comes to sponsorships, I doubt any other driver comes close. As Martin Brundle said at the end of last season, "Mercedes probably wanted Lewis to win, because he's boxoffice".
No other driver brings the average (not necessarily petrolhead) fan to the sport.
Oh, a quick prediction, 20 years time, a Hollywood movie on Lewis Hamilton.
How a little black kid from the ghettos of Stevenage made his way through the most prestigious sport in the world, and became champion. (alot of which being true).
Sounds corney, but they would be able to make one on any other of the current drivers, nor any I can think of from the past 20 years.
Having said that, when it comes to sponsorships, I doubt any other driver comes close. As Martin Brundle said at the end of last season, "Mercedes probably wanted Lewis to win, because he's boxoffice".
No other driver brings the average (not necessarily petrolhead) fan to the sport.
Oh, a quick prediction, 20 years time, a Hollywood movie on Lewis Hamilton.
How a little black kid from the ghettos of Stevenage made his way through the most prestigious sport in the world, and became champion. (alot of which being true).
Sounds corney, but they would be able to make one on any other of the current drivers, nor any I can think of from the past 20 years.
Jonsnow606 said:
Oh, a quick prediction, 20 years time, a Hollywood movie on Lewis Hamilton.
How a little black kid from the ghettos of Stevenage made his way through the most prestigious sport in the world, and became champion. (alot of which being true).
And act two will begin with his return to McLaren, after Alonso's second departure from the team.How a little black kid from the ghettos of Stevenage made his way through the most prestigious sport in the world, and became champion. (alot of which being true).
suffolk009 said:
Jonsnow606 said:
Oh, a quick prediction, 20 years time, a Hollywood movie on Lewis Hamilton.
How a little black kid from the ghettos of Stevenage made his way through the most prestigious sport in the world, and became champion. (alot of which being true).
And act two will begin with his return to McLaren, after Alonso's second departure from the team.How a little black kid from the ghettos of Stevenage made his way through the most prestigious sport in the world, and became champion. (alot of which being true).
Doink said:
Its clear Lewis is holding out to see how well the McLarens go in testing and possibly even the first few races before he commits to Mercedes
Is it? I think that's the furthest thing from his mind at the moment.
He's putting a multi-million pound deal together for a term of 3 years or more. This will include obligations to sponsor, bonuses, image rights, etc, etc
I don't know what business you're in but even in my relatively simple operation in comparison, we don't compile deals like that in a couple of weeks.
McLaren/Honda/Ferrari/Red Bull are all just bargaining chips in a these-people-would-want-me-if-you-don't fashion. He's paying no attention to their performance at present.
Do you really think his thought process would go
"Hang on a minute, McLaren have done OK in the first few races here - sod Mercedes where I've built up a team around me and won the WDC in a dominant car with a dominant engine, let's get back on the blower to Ron"
Doink said:
I could understand him and the team putting it off till the season was over and title was decided saying no rush and they would look at it in the closed season - they said so themselves, well the seasons finished, Lewis is champ so what is he waiting for?
They're finalising the details, that's allYou're thinking of this process in sporting terms, not business terms.
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