Hamilton's contract ends next year, however, as Toto Wolff argues, talks about the new Lewis contract are already under way and should be finalized in the coming weeks. The four-time world champion certainly does not have to worry about his future. The new team partner, Valtteri Bottas, has a somewhat less comfortable situation, re-signing only one year contract in Mercedes.
Toto Wolff in an interview for BBC Radio 5 Live admitted for the first time that the Australian may be an attractive option for his team. It is possible, however, that in this way he also wants to force Red Bull to increase his salary, which can effectively reduce the budget of rivals.
"So far, I would like our duo to continue working together, we decided to race with them in the 2018 season, but I must admit that the 2019 season promises to be very exciting," said Wolff.
"There will be more young drivers who will gain experience and some very good drivers like Daniel [Ricciardo] will be available."
"We want to see how the first part of the season will look, if our car will be good enough and strong enough to focus on it and then we will analyze the situation and make the right decisions."
"We want to see how the first part of the season will look, if our car will be good enough and strong enough to focus on it and then we will analyze the situation and make the right decisions."
"If you were asking this question a year ago, I would say that Lewis and Nico, two drivers who are fiercely rivaling and pushing each other, making the car faster," said Wolff when asked about the perfect duo of the drivers. "However, in the 2017 season we realized that the positive dynamics between Valtteri and Lewis was an important asset for us."
