Just because it’s not all true doesn’t mean it’s all a lie. At the moment there is no talk of anything else. Daily Mail He reported during the week of an offer from Ferrari to Hamilton for 45 million euros a year that smacks more of a claim to tighten the renewal with Mercedes than of a real possibility. Because Sainz and Leclerc have a contract at Maranello until 2024 included and no one, in Italy or in the paddock, has so far pointed to the two drivers as the cause of the team’s lack of performance. But the season is tense, the results are not forthcoming and SF-23 gets stuck as Red Bull gets away. Yeah Sir Lewis He was unhappy at Brackley and allowed himself to be loved, it would even make sense for Ferrari to pay attention to the offer.
In any case, Fréd Vasseur, head of Ferrari, denied the alleged offer upon arrival in Monaco: “I can jokingly say that a few weeks ago you sent Sainz to Audi, and last week you sent Leclerc to Mercedes. Now I am alone (laughs). In this phase of the season every week there is a story. But we haven’t made an offer to Hamilton. We haven’t talked about anything. Any team on the grid would love Hamilton, it would be silly to say otherwise, but I have spoken to Hamilton every weekend for the last 20 years. Leclerc, between a rock and a hard place (with Lewis to his right), said at the FIA press conference that anyone wants to be Hamilton’s teammate, but that he is happy “with Carlos, very fast.” And the Spaniard, silent about this kind of rumors, settled AS: “I have been in Formula 1 for eight years and in this part of the year, if all the rumors were true, each one would be in a different team each year. I am used to it. Me to mine, as always”.
It was Hamilton himself who pointed to the negotiations to extend his ties with Mercedes, which end this year: “When you are talking about the renewal, speculation always arises. My team is working a lot in the background with Toto (Wolff, Mercedes boss) and we are almost at the end to have the contract prepared”. Meanwhile, Alonso sent him a advice-errand if you have doubts about his continuity: “He always says that they win and lose together, so I suppose he will stay (at Mercedes).”
“I still have the thorn in me from last year”
Back in competition after a two-week break that also influences rumors, Sainz aspires to the maximum in the Monaco GP. “You have to have rhythm in Monte Carlo, the car is still important, but after one lap we know that our car is better than in the race and that in this circuit he has always been strong. I still think that Red Bull is favorite because they have a car with no weak points”.
But the man from Madrid remembers his two second places in 2021 and 2022. And there is only one way to improve them: “I still have the thorn in me from last year, a race that I could have won with a little more luck. A year later, the objective is to take pole position, which is what gives you the most chances to win. It could be a good weekend to try to get back on the podium or aim for something more. It is the circuit in which I have obtained the most points together with Austin and Barcelona, so I like to have that on the list, to go well in Monaco”.