I have a theory about Lewis Hamilton

[Chrill]

OK, so you all know how Lewis and Mercedes have been on the verge of agreeing terms for a contract extension for more or less half a year by now? Well...

1) Lewis has appeared the weaker Mercedes driver lately. In fact, he has only outpaced Bottas in Australia.
2) The Mercedes of last year was rightly called a diva. Their 2018 car does not appear that way but still carries that label.
3) Mercedes and Lewis has not yet announced a contract
4) Lewis has appeared less upbeat and less prominent in press conferences this year (my own opinion)

Has Bottas raised his game THAT much, or is Lewis simply not performing on his peak level? Is the reason for the contract delays Lewis and his uncertainty as to how long he wishes to continue racing in F1? Or is the car really not good enough, and this annoys Lewis? I mean, there are some weaker rumours picking up speed that he will be going head to head with Vettel next year. In the Ferrari. Oh boy. No decent sources for this one yet.

My theory is this: Lewis Hamilton is bored of F1. He doesn't like the new cars and their inability to follow other cars. He is satisfied with four world championships. He bested the great Ayrton Senna.
He could even be retiring after this season.

What's your take on the Mercedes-Lewis non-deal?

(I'm sure they will announce a contract extension within an hour of me posting this)

[Penfold]

Senna's accumulation of World Championships was somewhat curtailed by a fast-moving metal rod... a few more years at Williams could well have moved him to five or six titles.

As for Lewis, I would agree that he doesn't seem to be firing on all cylinders this year.  Perhaps it's nothing more than the car not being quite dialled into his style, or perhaps he is, as you speculate, bored with F1 in its current form - might the aero tweaks announced for 2019 affect his thinking?  One thing's for sure (in my mind), he's not going to want to be beaten by Vettel this year.

[Chrill]

https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/mercedes-enjoying-four-driver-f1-future-puzzle-1033517/

More of "We're on the same page, a contract is no worry" which has been the case for half a year.

[Penfold]

Ahh, so George Russell waiting in the wings for a Merc-backed opening.  Perhaps a Force India drive will make itself available sometime in the next few years.

[Chrill]

https://drivetribe.com/p/is-lewis-hamilton-set-to-retire-LVMYunLATj-6b5NDaBeQdQ?iid=Q4guxlnISGWMxPf9jE9o7g&utm_campaign=diehardf1fans&utm_medium=fb&utm_source=network

Someone else now has a theory about Lewis Hamilton.

[Penfold]

Yes, but yours is more succinct; an under-appreciated quality in the presentation of F1-related speculation.

[Chrill]

Hmm. Seems I was wrong. What a surprise.

[Penfold]

... but at least you were succinct. 

[Chrill]

I was that.

[Chrill]

Bump.

It's mid-October. Is Lewis really holding out for more money, or is there something else going on? Is the calendar simply so hectic that Mercedes haven't bothered yet? Is Lewis worried about losing Toto, or about Mercedes pulling support? Is he looking for a longer-term contract than Mercedes is offering, or is it the other way round that he wants to sign a short contract this time?

It's pretty late for a six-time World Champion to not have a contract announced.

[Penfold]

No rush for Lewis, they have to wait on him.  Doesn't strike me as a guy who's about to quit F1, eight titles virtually guaranteed given Merc's dominance and Bottas' weakness.