The weird and wonderful world of Lewis Hamilton

[Ruslan]

Bottom post of the previous page:

Any word as to how much he is getting paid next year? I gather the discussion was somewhere between $30 - $50 million.

According to one article: "According to multiple authoritative sources, the seven time world champion has even signed up with a minor pay-cut this year in a contract that does not include an option for 2022....Hamilton...is rumoured to make around EUR 40 million per year."

See: https://www.grandprix.com/news/up-to-ha ... wolff.html

[PTRACER]

Any word as to how much he is getting paid next year? I gather the discussion was somewhere between $30 - $50 million.

According to one article: "According to multiple authoritative sources, the seven time world champion has even signed up with a minor pay-cut this year in a contract that does not include an option for 2022....Hamilton...is rumoured to make around EUR 40 million per year."

See: https://www.grandprix.com/news/up-to-ha ... wolff.html

The one year deal is to give them more time to negotiate a longer term contract.

I've never been paid $50,000,000 a year for a job but I wonder if it gets to a point where you feel like you don't need it anymore. And being an F1 driver honestly doesn't sound like as much fun as it used to be, so doing it over and over, year after year might get tiresome.

[Everso Biggyballies]

I've never been paid $50,000,000 a year for a job but I wonder if it gets to a point where you feel like you don't need it anymore.

Well, Kimi when he returned from his WRC / NASCAR stint returned to Renault on a very small retainer but a package skewed to results.

That year he did much better than expected, winning and getting plenty of podiums, to finish 3rd in the WDC ahead of Lewis and behind only Alonso and Vettel. The fact that he earnt 18 million in results bonuses (he was paid $X000 per point, scoring over 200) was irrelevant in the end because payment of that full amount would have sent the team broke, so he accepted a low percentage payout many millions less than it should have been.

But he doesnt need the money and openly says the money is now irrelevant to him and only the love of racing these days is important.

Interestingly online nett worth outlets show Kimi as being worth just 35 million shy of Lewis.

[Ruslan]

Any word as to how much he is getting paid next year? I gather the discussion was somewhere between $30 - $50 million.

According to one article: "According to multiple authoritative sources, the seven time world champion has even signed up with a minor pay-cut this year in a contract that does not include an option for 2022....Hamilton...is rumoured to make around EUR 40 million per year."

See: https://www.grandprix.com/news/up-to-ha ... wolff.html

The one year deal is to give them more time to negotiate a longer term contract.

I've never been paid $50,000,000 a year for a job but I wonder if it gets to a point where you feel like you don't need it anymore. And being an F1 driver honestly doesn't sound like as much fun as it used to be, so doing it over and over, year after year might get tiresome.

Well, I don't know which rumors to believe, but I gather he was looking at both the paycheck, some percentage, and some future role in the team. So there was possibly a number of things tangling this up.

One does wonder what would be Hamilton's future role in the team when he retires from driving. Obviously he is looking for something more than just a PR role.

[Everso Biggyballies]

Any word as to how much he is getting paid next year? I gather the discussion was somewhere between $30 - $50 million.

According to one article: "According to multiple authoritative sources, the seven time world champion has even signed up with a minor pay-cut this year in a contract that does not include an option for 2022....Hamilton...is rumoured to make around EUR 40 million per year."

See: https://www.grandprix.com/news/up-to-ha ... wolff.html

The one year deal is to give them more time to negotiate a longer term contract.

I've never been paid $50,000,000 a year for a job but I wonder if it gets to a point where you feel like you don't need it anymore. And being an F1 driver honestly doesn't sound like as much fun as it used to be, so doing it over and over, year after year might get tiresome.

Well, I don't know which rumors to believe, but I gather he was looking at both the paycheck, some percentage, and some future role in the team. So there was possibly a number of things tangling this up.

One does wonder what would be Hamilton's future role in the team when he retires from driving. Obviously he is looking for something more than just a PR role.

I think much of it might have been more looking at post F1, with SLH seeking the commitment of Mercedes to increase their equality stance and to AFAIK set up a joint foundation dedicated to diversity and inclusion.

There is no doubt he did not get all he wanted though, and Toto has confirmed Lewis has no team mate veto which is something rumoured to be on the SLH wishlist.

Separate to the SLH saga I am a bit sorry to see that F1 has decided to not continue with the Rainbow logo as part of their "We Race as One" commitment. I thought it added something visually pleasing to the Safety Car etc and added to the message.

I wonder if that means F1's commitment has become more focussed on racism over other issues such as Gay rights / Female equal opportunities?

[DoubleFart]

The rainbow has always been an LGBT+ symbol and therefore was never the correct "catch all" symbol.

Of course, the cynic in me says they removed it because of the Saudi GP.

[Everso Biggyballies]

The rainbow has always been an LGBT+ symbol and therefore was never the correct "catch all" symbol.

Of course, the cynic in me says they removed it because of the Saudi GP.

I cant wait to read that that is one of the events with a Women's W series race on the card!.

[MonteCristo]

Obviously he is looking for something more than just a PR role.

Lead Designer, Clothes Division.

[Ruslan]

There is no doubt he did not get all he wanted though, and Toto has confirmed Lewis has no team mate veto which is something rumoured to be on the SLH wishlist.

Yea, it is clear that he is developing some long-term post-driving career plan. Will it be primary political/social issues and activism or is he looking for something else (team management?)?

Oddly enough I think the one year contract indicates that he is probably going to be racing for 2 or more years. He didn't get what he wanted with these negotiations, in part because of the coronavirus and the economic drag created from it, so he is going to have to try again later this year. He may have more leverage then.

[DoubleFart]

Hamilton fans are the most annoying and pathetic fans online, closely outdoing the Norris fangirls.

Apparently he built Mercedes, just like Schumacher built Ferrari, but Lewis' job was harder because Mercedes were in a worse position than Ferrari when each driver joined. Ignored the fact that Schumacher, Brawn and Rosberg built that team, and the 2014 Engine and Aero was started in 2012 before Lewis even signed. No response from them.

Claiming Lewis is amazing because he thrashed Bottas by over a lap at Istanbul. Countered with Hill winning by 2 laps in Australia 95, which they said only showed how dominant the car was - naturally they wouldn't respond when I pointed out that car didn't win the constructors.

Also countered that if Lewis is so much better than Bottas (Their Istanbul claim) it shows that his titles are worthless considering his teammate (in their words) is nowhere near Lewis' level, so he has no opposition and is merely stat padding. Again, no response.

After tearing apart every argument, they simply responded again without any referencing the above, purely saying Lewis built Mercedes and is the best ever.

Fucking. Retards.

This is why F1 shouldn't go chasing after these young idiots.

[Cheeveer]

Okay? Who is it F1 shouldn't go chasing after? Energy well spent I'd say. There's no need to put people down, gatekeeping only makes the sport poorer. People may enjoy F1 for any reason they want.

[DoubleFart]

They should go after the people that actually matter - the people who have money to spend, and their children either fall in line or they don't.

These people are actively turning me off of F1 - I've actually been called a racist for saying that Lewis wasn't responsible for this Merc team, as all five of the designers of the W05 Hybrid in 2014 pre-dated him.

It's a fucking fact, and these people are so angry they called me racist. The cult that surrounds Hamilton really turns me off, almost as much as him winning.

[Ruslan]

Hamilton fans are the most annoying and pathetic fans online, closely outdoing the Norris fangirls.

Apparently he built Mercedes, just like Schumacher built Ferrari, but Lewis' job was harder because Mercedes were in a worse position than Ferrari when each driver joined. Ignored the fact that Schumacher, Brawn and Rosberg built that team, and the 2014 Engine and Aero was started in 2012 before Lewis even signed. No response from them.

Claiming Lewis is amazing because he thrashed Bottas by over a lap at Istanbul. Countered with Hill winning by 2 laps in Australia 95, which they said only showed how dominant the car was - naturally they wouldn't respond when I pointed out that car didn't win the constructors.

Also countered that if Lewis is so much better than Bottas (Their Istanbul claim) it shows that his titles are worthless considering his teammate (in their words) is nowhere near Lewis' level, so he has no opposition and is merely stat padding. Again, no response.

After tearing apart every argument, they simply responded again without any referencing the above, purely saying Lewis built Mercedes and is the best ever.

Fucking. Retards.

This is why F1 shouldn't go chasing after these young idiots.

Really. Step back and re-read your post when you are sober.

Listen, the fan boys drive me up the wall also. They are people who "overstate the facts" of their arguments to justify how and why their favorite driver is the best, and then waste a lot of time denigrating any other driver who is a competitor to them, any engineer that doesn't give them the best car, and any team manager who fires them. @Star knows who I am specifically talking about.

Now, I do happen to like Hamilton and think he is the best driver in the current field. I am also a fan of Lando Norris.

But, in the bigger picture, we are not the future of F1. We are getting too old (I am guessing your are older than 30). For the sport to grow, it needs the next generation. They need to have their heroes. They need to be fans of someone. We all got sucked into the sport for various reasons. So....my recommendation:

1. Politely present the counter-argument.
2. Then walk away.

In the end, I don't post because I expect to actually ever win an argument with the person I am talking to or expect to change their mind. I know all too well that once an person states an opinion on a forum, it really never changes "in the short term." I post for everyone else outside of the immediate debate who happens to read this. This is a public forum. The people I will influence with my arguments is not the person I am arguing with, but the other people who are reading the debate.

So... embrace the new F1 fans, even the "fan boys." Then try to broaden their perspective. We all want to see the sport grow (I assume). The sport will die if it is only a group of old farts watching the young punks race.

[DoubleFart]

I try to broaden their perspective, but the youth of today, the apparently most left, open and free generation ever, are actually as closed off as I find the right in my day job.

Honestly, trying to explain that losing 6-8 months of development as Brawn did because of their money struggles left them so far off Red Bull that they were never going to catch up until a rule change.

Apparently that's rubbish, and we constantly have rule changes and Hamilton always leads the team through them.

We're yet to have a significant rule change since the Hybrid era began. They don't accept this.

[erwin greven]

Really. Step back and re-read your post when you are sober.

And now step back and re-read your post.

[Ruslan]

Really. Step back and re-read your post when you are sober.

And now step back and re-read your post.

I have. I am well aware of what I said. What about it bothers you?