Mercedes director names the one thing that could have convinced Lewis Hamilton to stay

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Lewis Hamilton is approaching the final 10 races of his spell at Mercedes. And doubts are starting to emerge about his move to Ferrari.

According to one journalist, the prevailing opinion ‘within the paddock’ is that Hamilton has made a mistake. Mercedes and Ferrari have gone in opposite directions this season.

The Scuderia looked well-placed to challenge for the championship after Charles Leclerc won the Monaco Grand Prix at the end of May. He was just 31 points behind Max Verstappen in the drivers’, with Ferrari even closer to Red Bull in the constructors’ (24).

But they rushed through an upgrade for the Spanish GP two races later and it has compromised their aerodynamic performance, leading to bouncing. Ferrari have now spent multiple weekends trying to iron out the issue, which has left them stagnant as others have improved.

Indeed, Mercedes have now overtaken them in the pecking order. Hamilton’s bombshell decision looked like a masterstroke when the Silver Arrows struggled during Ferrari’s impressive start.

But Toto Wolff’s team made a breakthrough in June, enabling them to challenge Red Bull and McLaren. Hamilton won two of the last three races before the summer break, having endured a two-and-a-half-year barren run.

Andrew Shovlin says Lewis Hamilton wouldn’t have left dominant Mercedes

Speaking to outlets including Racing News 365 NL, Mercedes trackside engineering director Andrew Shovlin reflected on Hamilton’s departure. He believes that the 39-year-old was determined to pursue a ‘different challenge’.

As such, it would have been ‘very difficult to convince him’ to stay for the final year of his contract. Hamilton opted out of the last 12 months as the framework of the deal allowed.

He may not have pursued his Ferrari dream had Mercedes still been dominant. His partnership with the German manufacturer has delivered a record 84 wins and six world championships.

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Mercedes are still 80 points behind the Prancing Horse in the standings. But that gap was 156 after Monaco, so there’s a very real chance they swap places before the season is out.

“As I said, if we were dominating a championship now, I suspect it would be difficult for him to move to Ferrari,” Shovlin said. “But I think a big part of Lewis is wanting to take on a different challenge with a different team. I think it would be very difficult to convince him otherwise if he has made that decision.”

Toto Wolff offered Max Verstappen something he denied Lewis Hamilton

Reports elsewhere have claimed Hamilton wanted more commitment from Mercedes in negotiations. In the end, it seems both parties were content with a get-out clause after one year.

Wolff seems ready to look to the future by promoting 17-year-old prodigy Kimi Antonelli following Hamilton’s exit. And he’ll surely pounce on Verstappen if he becomes available too.

The team principal has unsuccessfully attempted to court the world champion this year. Wolff even offered Verstappen an ambassadorship deal that would kick in after he retired.

Hamilton made the same request, but Mercedes didn’t accede. While there have been few public signs of tension, that would inevitably have damaged the relationship.