Lewis Hamilton has hinted he could race for another five years after Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff revealed the pair had recently spoken about his future - while he's also had his say on budget caps being broken.
The seven-time world champion has one more year left of his Mercedes deal at the end of the current season.
Hamilton, 37, holds the record for the most wins, pole positions and podiums in Formula One history and is tied with Michael Schumacher for the most drivers’ championships.
But he appears to be far from finished, Wolff telling Channel 4 last weekend that “we sat down and he says ‘look, I have another five years in me, how do you see that?’”
Asked ahead of the Japanese Grand Prix if that was his plan, Hamilton replied: “I haven’t spoken to him (Wolff) about his comments but I can’t say just yet.
“Possibly, yes, I’m feeling good. I love what I’m doing. We have a lot of work to do, a lot to achieve still. So I’m not planning on going anywhere, any time soon.”
Wolff hailed Hamilton as the “shining star on and off track” in F1 and it was with one eye on his future out of the car where the Briton explained why he wants to remain in the sport for well beyond an additional five years.
“It’s not that I’m not sure, I know what I want to do. I plan on staying longer. It’s just not set in stone how long,” he added.
“I plan on staying with Mercedes for the rest of my life, that’s a definite. It’s more figuring out what we are going to do down the line, even beyond racing I want to be building with Mercedes and there is a lot that Mercedes can do, it’s not just a car manufacturer.
“It provides so many jobs for so many people and it has such a powerful platform to really shift narratives and it has a place where it can have a really positive impact on the environment – there’s loads of things that we can do together and I want to be a part of that.
“I want to be part of that shift and work process with Mercedes far beyond races and championships, but for now it’s to win world championships and that’s the immediate focus.”
Punishments for budget cap breaches
Meanwhile, Hamilton believes the integrity of Formula One would be damaged if a team were found to have broken the budget cap – insisting it is “imperative” that any breach is suitably punished.
The sport’s governing body, the FIA, has delayed its findings into whether any of the grid’s teams have broken the financial rules until Monday but it was anticipated that they would reveal those that failed to comply with last season’s £114million cap.
Red Bull faced unproven allegations at the Singapore Grand Prix that they exceeded F1’s costs cap last term – bringing into the spotlight the legitimacy of Max Verstappen’s already controversial championship win over Hamilton.
“I think it’s imperative, honestly, just for transparency,” the seven-time world champion said in Suzuka. “I think we need to continue to have transparency for the fans, for the integrity of the sport. I don’t really know enough about it. I know obviously there’s lots of conversations that are going on in the background. No one truly knows.
“There’s different numbers and different things being said here and there, so I was expecting those results to come out yesterday.
“I would like to think that if it’s been delayed it’s because it’s been taken very seriously and I trust that Mohammed (bin Sulayem, FIA president) is taking it seriously and will do what is right for the sport, I hope.
“I think it would be bad for the sport if action wasn’t taken if there was a breach, but I don’t know if there is so I’ll wait.”
While calling for a punishment to fit any crime, Hamilton admits he is also wary of the reputational harm the sport would suffer if an infringement were discovered.
Asked if a team breaking the budget cap would damage F1, Hamilton seemed to suggest he felt Red Bull had done so last season, replying: “For sure, because then it’ll put in question our values, the integrity of the sport.
“I remember last year as a driver, you were always asking for updates, updates, updates on things, whether it’s fuel, whatever it is.
“And I remember in Silverstone when we got our last update and I remember that was almost three tenths, I think that update, and I’m pretty certain it cost less than a million.
“But I remember after that needing more updates – but then seeing trucks… updates continuing to arrive on the other car, thinking ‘jeez, it’s going to be hard to beat them in the championship if they keep bringing updates’.
“It’s so integral to development, the development race and if we had another half a million to spend we would have been in a different position at some of the following races if we were just bought another floor which we could have easily done but that’s not the name of the game.
“I’m grateful that our team is very strict, given the way we work and they do an amazing job. So it needs to be taken seriously as I said.”
Verstappen could retain his drivers’ championship this weekend and said he had nothing on his mind in relation to a potential penalty for his Red Bull team.
“To be honest, I’m not really busy with these kind of things,” he said. “It’s up to the teams and with the FIA and I just need to focus on the driving. There’s not much more to say on that. I guess we’ll find out on Monday.”
Other drivers backed up Hamilton’s opinion, with Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc adding: “Speaking about ourselves of course if we have more to spend you will go faster on track.
“So if there’s any team found guilty of that they should be punished. Then what’s the punishment? I’m not the one to decide, but for sure it should be punished.”
Hamilton’s Mercedes team-mate George Russell believes the findings should prove “straightforward” as he echoed the sentiments of his compatriot.
“I trust in Mohammed and the FIA to bring an appropriate punishment for anyone who’s found guilty of the charges accused,” said Russell.
“It should be quite straightforward and you’d expect that the amount that’s gone over should be the amount that’s taken off for next year’s budget, and probably a bit more on top of that, as a punishment. But let’s wait and see.”