Lewis Hamilton says there is “no guarantee” that he will still compete in Formula 1 next year, following his victory at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix.
Hamilton claimed his 93rd Formula 1 win by leading Mercedes team-mate Valtteri Bottas at Imola, a result which clinched a seventh straight Constructors’ crown for the team.
Hamilton is out of contract with Mercedes at the end of 2020 but both parties have indicated that they will conduct talks once the titles have been settled.
Mercedes boss Toto Wolff’s future has been the subject of speculation amid suggestions that he will scale back his day-to-day involvement in the running of the Formula 1 team.
When it was suggested that Wolff may not be in the same role next year Hamilton replied: “I don’t know if I’m going to be here next year, so it’s not really a concern for me at the moment.
“I understand and we have a lot of deep conversations, Toto and I, so I am very, very aware of where he is mentally and we share and carry a lot of the weight together I think.
“I’ve been here a long, long time and I can definitely understand wanting to pull back a little bit and give time to things like family and those things.
“I don’t know who will replace him, he’s a leader. He’s not going to put anyone in who’s not going to be able to do the job, who’s not going to be up to it. He will find the right people.
“But this team is not about one person, it’s a collective of a lot of people. It’s a real team effort. I’m supportive of him whatever he wants to do moving forwards.”
Hamilton added that “we are in November and it’s crazy that Christmas is not that far away.
“Naturally, I feel great and feel very strong. I feel like I could keep going for plenty of months, but on Toto and shelf life, so there’s multiple things that do stay on the top of my mind.
“I would like to be here next year but there’s no guarantee of that for sure. There’s a lot that excites me of the ‘after life’, so time will tell.”
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