A big topic in the Monaco paddock so far has been rumors of Lewis Hamilton in talks with Ferrari over a 2024 contract.
The main theme in the Monaco paddock so far is Lewis HamiltonHe is reportedly in talks with Ferrari about the contract for 2024.
Current Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz he said he takes the media with a grain of salt.
“Yesterday it was me at Audi, then Charles (Leclerc) at Mercedes. Now it’s Hamilton’s turn,” said the Spaniard.
“We just have to focus on our work.”
Ferrari Boss Frederick Vasseur he was also eager to dispel speculation.
“With Sainz at Audi and Leclerc at Mercedes, I don’t have any drivers anymore,” he joked. “So I have to look around the market.”
Vasseur said he often talks to the 38-year-old Hamilton in the paddock because “we’ve known each other for years”.
“There are no talks between us and Lewis or an offer,” the Frenchman insisted.
“In two months we will start talking to our drivers about the future. Until then, the priority is to make our car more competitive.
“The drivers are not our problem,” said Vasseur.
However, he admitted that “any team on the grid” would be interested in seven-time world champion Hamilton if he was really on the move.
“It would be nonsense not to say something like that,” Vasseur said. “But I have been arguing with Hamilton almost every weekend for 20 years and I won’t stop because you (reporters) are chasing me.”
Fernando Alonso he also treated the gossip with humor.
“He (Hamilton) always said he wins and loses with the team, so if he doesn’t win he should stay,” smiled the Spaniard.
Max Verstappen he was even more direct when asked if he would risk a Ferrari move for Hamilton.
“I don’t bet and I don’t care,” the Red Bull driver said on Thursday.
“He has to make that decision and I think he’s really happy at Mercedes. Maybe the rumors are good for him because they raise the price Mercedes has to pay.”
As for Hamilton, he has tried to dismiss the stories as “speculation” and believes journalists “maybe were just bored” after the last race at Imola was cancelled.
“As I said, my team (of managers) is working closely behind the scenes with Toto (Wolff) and we are almost at the end of contract preparation,” he said.
“Honestly, these are not things I can really talk about,” Hamilton added, “but I think this is the first time I haven’t negotiated myself and I have a great team in the background that is doing all the work so I can fully focus on the work being done.”
