Wolff sheds new light on Hamilton talks as Mercedes deal beckons

Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff claims that Lewis Hamilton has talked about competing in F1 for another decade before retiring, although the Austrian doesn’t believe his comments to be serious. Wolff states that the pair have discussed Hamilton’s F1 future following information from the driver himself that a multi-year contract extension could be in the works.Simply getting onto the F1 grid is considered a massive achievement for many of the world’s top drivers. Hamilton is now coming towards the end of his 16th season, during which he has amassed an unsurpassed seven Drivers’ Championships. But as his 38th birthday creeps closer along with the end of his Mercedes contract, which is due to expire at the end of next season, speculation persists over the Brit’s next move. He recently claimed that discussions had been held over a multi-year extension that could keep him racing into his fourties. Speaking to Performance People, Wolff has shed more light on their recent talks and the Silver Arrows boss claims that Hamilton has joked about continuing for another 10 years.DON’T MISS: Mercedes drop Daniel Ricciardo hint as Lewis Hamilton’s back-up joins new team for 2023 Toto Wolff has shed new light on Lewis Hamilton contract talks (Image: YouTube: Performance People / GETTY)”Lewis and I have grown very close with one another over the last eight years,” he said. “‘Grows’ is the right terminology because we’ve gone through difficult phases as well. Lewis is totally mature and conscious about where he stands in his career.”He’s not being led by his emotions, like I’ve seen with sportspeople that think it can go on forever. Lewis is rational and intelligent about it. He says, ‘I know I have a shelf-life as a racing driver. It’s clear.’ You can push that shelf-life further by being disciplined. Lewis Hamilton took P2 at the Mexican Grand Prix on Sunday (Image: GETTY)Pushing for an eighth world title is thought to be a massive motivation for Hamilton, who was denied that milestone by narrowly losing out to Max Verstappen on the final lap of a controversial 2021 season finale.Currently, Hamilton and Michael Schumacher are tied at the top of the all-time world titles charts with seven apiece. Mercedes haven’t been able to compete with Red Bull on pace this season, leaving the former McLaren star in a battle to finish best of the rest.