Guenther Steiner sets Mercedes condition for Lewis Hamilton to Haas move
Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes, talking to media at Albert Park. Australia, March 2023.
Guenther Steiner would happily welcome Lewis Hamilton to Haas in the future, but joked that it would only be on the proviso that Toto Wolff and Mercedes still pay his salary.
Hamilton’s future is currently up for discussion as his current Mercedes deal is due to expire at the end of the year, though he has made it clear he intends to continue with the team beyond the end of 2023 as he goes in search of an eighth World Championship.
Who will be driving for Haas next season is also up for debate, but team principal Steiner admitted that the seven-time World Champion may be somewhat out of their price range, given he is one of the highest-paid drivers in the sport.
On that note, Steiner joked that he would bring Hamilton to his team, but only if his current team continues to pay his wages.
“If Toto pays his salary, yes absolutely! You have to write that now! When Toto asks why he should pay the salary, I’ll say, ‘because you should!'” Steiner told the Metro.
The longer the season progresses without Hamilton’s future being decided, the more of a talking point his contractual uncertainty is likely to become.
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Both Hamilton and Mercedes insist at this time that they want to continue working together into the future, despite a 2022 campaign that saw them well off the pace of Red Bull and Ferrari, and a 2023 season that has begun on the back foot once again – though significant changes are believed to be on the way for the W14.
But given the success both driver and team have achieved together since he made the move from McLaren back in 2013, Steiner is confident that Hamilton won’t go anywhere else next season – not least because of the lead drivers already in place at the other front-running teams.
“I think he’ll stay,” Steiner said. “He’s a Mercedes man. Which other options has he got? All the other teams have got very strong drivers.
“Max [Verstappen] is at Red Bull, Fernando [Alonso] is at Aston Martin and Charles Leclerc is at Ferrari.”
