F1 paddock rumour suggests Ferrari could give Lewis Hamilton the Daniel Ricciardo treatment

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Lewis Hamilton is reportedly under contract at Ferrari until the end of 2027. The team have refused to confirm the length of the deal he signed when he joined from Mercedes.

But the consensus in the paddock is that Hamilton reached a three-year agreement with Ferrari, one that would run beyond his 42nd birthday. As with virtually every driver, there are exit clauses included ‘in the small print’.

It’s extremely unlikely that Hamilton leaves Ferrari at the end of this year, but the situation may change if 2026 proves to be a repeat of 2025. The seven-time world champion hasn’t scored a Grand Prix podium all year and has struggled to maintain any positive momentum.

Ted Kravitz says it’s ‘absolutely clear’ that Ferrari academy driver Oliver Bearman will eventually replace Hamilton. If Bearman takes a leap in a second year and Hamilton continues to struggle, there will be growing calls to pull the trigger.

Ferrari could pay off Lewis Hamilton to leave before the end of his contract

Should Ferrari decide they want to move on from Hamilton before 2027 – a distant but realistic possibility – then they would potentially have to pay him off.

There have been two high-profile examples of this happening in the sport’s recent history. In 2022, McLaren paid Daniel Ricciardo nearly £24m to break his contract so they could sign Oscar Piastri.

Ricciardo dropped off the grid entirely, though he did return for an ill-fated stint at AlphaTauri/Racing Bulls. The Australian hoped for another shot at Red Bull as a replacement for the underperforming Sergio Perez, but it never materialised.

Perez was let go nonetheless, a move that cost Red Bull £11m. They had given him a one-plus-one contract extension in June but then felt compelled to rip up the deal in December.

According to Bild, there’s been a rumour circulating in the paddock ‘for some time’ that Ferrari could take similar action with Hamilton. They gave Kimi Raikkonen a ‘large severance package’ in 2009 when they wanted Fernando Alonso.

How much would it cost Ferrari to pay off Lewis Hamilton?

Bild say that Hamilton would receive the salary from the remaining year(s) on his contract. Alternatively, Ferrari could try and persuade him to accept a lower figure.

Hamilton earns £55m per year at Ferrari, but this still wouldn’t be the biggest pay-off in F1 history. Christian Horner received £80m from Red Bull after he was sacked with four full years of his contract remaining.

Horner was entitled to an even bigger package but accepted a lower sum. In exchange, Red Bull have allowed him to return to F1 from the spring.

While the F1 paddock is pessimistic about Hamilton’s Ferrari future, he’s hoping that the end of the ground-effect era enables him to recapture his best form. If the highest level he’s shown in 2025 becomes the norm, the narrative could change completely.