'I'm in my prime' - Hamilton responds to F1 retirement talk and Ferrari rumours
The seven-time world champion’s current deal with Mercedes expires at the end of 2023 and despite opening contract talks with team boss Toto Wolff earlier this year, an extension is yet to be signed off.
Continued uncertainty over Hamilton’s future has prompted huge speculation over whether he will continue racing amid Mercedes’ competitive struggles, but the 38-year-old insists he has no plans to quit anytime soon.
"I don't plan on stopping any time soon," Hamilton told ESPN ahead of this weekend's Miami Grand Prix.
"I'm not at the end of my career, I'm not in the downhill slope of my career. I'm in my prime.
"It all depends on how hard I want to work and keep myself in my prime, in terms of physical and mental capability.
"If you look at LeBron [James], if you look at Tom Brady, they have shown that it can be sustained for as long as you are dedicated enough to put the energy and time in.
"Right now, I don't plan on changing, I only plan on adding to the drive and the motivation and to being better. I'm massively driven.”
The rumour mill has been in overdrive in recent weeks with Charles Leclerc being linked with Mercedes as a potential replacement for Hamilton.
While Wolff admitted Leclerc needs to be on Mercedes’ “long-term” radar, he insisted the German manufacturer remains totally committed to Hamilton.
And it would appear the feeling is mutual, with Hamilton seemingly ruling out the possibility of switching teams.
"I'd be lying if I said I'd never thought about ending my career anywhere else,” Hamilton said.
"I started at McLaren, I'd like to think I'll always be a part of the McLaren family, I started there when I was 13 years old [as a junior driver], so I thought about what it would look like if I was at McLaren one day.
"I thought about and watched the Ferrari drivers on the screens at the track and of course you wonder what it would be like to be in red...
“But then I go to my team, to Mercedes, and this is my home. I'm happy where I am. I haven't signed a contract yet, but we are working on one."
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