Lewis Hamilton said in Monaco that he has not started talks with Ferrari about extending his contract, making clear that the Lewis Hamilton Ferrari contract status has not moved forward as the paddock arrives at the Monaco race weekend. Asked if discussions on a new deal were under way, Hamilton answered: “No. It’s still some time off.”
The comments matter because Hamilton’s future has been one of the sharper questions around Ferrari this season, and they came just days after Charles Leclerc signed a new deal with the team. That new agreement follows Leclerc’s previous contract from 2024, which is understood to run until the end of the 2028 season, leaving Ferrari with one driver settled for the long term while Hamilton remains on a different timetable.
Hamilton joined Ferrari ahead of the 2025 season on what is understood to be a two-plus-one deal, locking him in until the end of 2026 with an option on his side for a one-year extension. The structure always left room for a future decision, but Hamilton said in Monaco that he has not yet taken the step of engaging in those conversations. “It’s not a thought or conversation that I’m engaging in,” he said.
That stance is not the same as uncertainty about his career more broadly. In Canada last time out, Hamilton said, “I am going to be here for quite some time,” and he has also said he expects to be in Formula 1 for a while yet. The friction is in the timing: he is not nearing a decision window in public, even as Ferrari’s planning moves ahead around him and Leclerc’s place in the lineup is already settled deeper into the decade.
The next question is when Hamilton and Ferrari decide whether to activate the one-year extension or open negotiations on a fresh contract. For now, Hamilton has drawn the line in Monaco: the talks are not happening yet, and he is not treating them as a live issue.
