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The 2026 Formula 1 season will be Lewis Hamilton’s second campaign with Ferrari, but details are emerging about just how long he could be racing for the Scuderia in the future.
Lewis Hamilton is still getting up to speed with Ferrari after a very tricky first year with his new team.
He finished 86 points behind his teammate Charles Leclerc, and much has been made of his inability to record a Grand Prix podium finish.
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Hamilton spent much of the year trying to adapt at Ferrari, having spent more than a decade racing for Mercedes and learning every intricacy of racing for the Silver Arrows and sculpting their car around his requirements.
Ferrari chairman John Elkann ended up criticising both Hamilton and Leclerc publicly for their comments on the SF-25, although team principal Fred Vasseur was quick to protect his drivers.
That might be because a new contract clause has emerged from Hamilton’s contract that suggests their partnership won’t be ending any time soon.
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Lewis Hamilton could extend Ferrari deal into 2028 as new contract clauses emerges
A report from the German outlet Bild has shared more details about what’s going on behind the scenes at Ferrari between the team and Hamilton.
Hamilton is ‘internally’ facing criticism from the team for underperforming, having struggled to match Leclerc throughout 2025.
It’s now emerged, according to Bild’s information, that Hamilton’s contract runs until the end of 2027, having previously been announced by Ferrari as a ‘multi-year’ deal.
On top of this, it’s believed that Hamilton has a ‘unilateral’ option that would allow him to continue racing for Ferrari into 2028.
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Ferrari internally see this as a ‘tricky situation’ based on his performances last season.
It’s believed Hamilton earned over £87m [€100m] in 2025, with around £48m coming from his Ferrari contract, and the rest of his earnings being made up of advertising and image rights.
While Elkann and Vasseur were both keen to sign Hamilton onto his current lucrative deal, it’s now believed that the Ferrari chairman is ‘dissatisfied’ with the 40-year-old.
He continues to have the backing of Vasseur as the pair previously worked together in GP2, but Elkann still needs to be convinced.
It leaves Ferrari in an incredibly awkward position if Hamilton doesn’t live up to expectations in 2026, and the Scuderia then have the prospect of two more years with the seven-time world champion hanging over them.
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Ferrari taking all of the right steps to give Lewis Hamilton the chance to succeed in 2026
By the time the 2028 Formula 1 campaign comes around, the grid will have converged once again with new regulations arriving in a matter of weeks.
That means that unless Ferrari are miles ahead or a long way behind their rivals, it will come down to the skill of the driver who comes out on top.
Hamilton last won a teammate head-to-head in 2023, and Leclerc is only getting better right now.
Ferrari are trying to match McLaren and Red Bull when it comes to downforce next season, which is an area they’ve been lacking in the past.
Not only that, but Ferrari will potentially introduce a new steering wheel in 2026 that more closely resembles what Hamilton had at Mercedes in the past.
If the stars align and Hamilton does rediscover the form that turned him into a seven-time world champion, then Ferrari will be desperate for him to activate the extension in his contract.
Otherwise, it could prove to have been a negotiating disaster giving Hamilton that power in negotiation.
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