My 'dream team' are Mercedes, says Lewis

LONDON • Six-time Formula One world champion Lewis Hamilton has dismissed talk of a "dream move" to Ferrari being dashed, saying he was already with his dream team at Mercedes and had no plans to leave.

The 35-year-old Briton, who has won five of his titles with the Silver Arrows, is out of contract at the end of this year and as such, has been heavily linked with a move to the Scuderia.

Ferrari chief executive officer Louis Carey Camilleri said in December that he was "flattered" that Hamilton had agreed to discuss his future in conversations with the team's chairman John Elkann.

This was, however, before the coronavirus pandemic threw a spanner in the works, with the season yet to get started and the 2021 rule changes delayed to 2022.

After British tabloid The Sun suggested in a headline that his dreams of a "mega-money Ferrari move" had been dashed over reports that four-time champion Sebastian Vettel is set to extend his six-year stay with the Italian team, Hamilton appeared to end talk of a stunning switch on his Instagram page.

"First off, there is no dream of a dash to another team. I am with my dream team," he said in a post that has since been deleted.

"Second, there's not a thing in my way as I'm not trying to move. I'm with the people who have cared from day 1. We are the best team."

Mercedes have won the last six drivers' and constructors' titles, and one more for Hamilton would equal Michael Schumacher's record of seven championships.

It is unclear if he can match the German's achievement this year, though, with nine races already postponed or cancelled.

The French Grand Prix also looks set to be delayed, while the Belgian Grand Prix is another doubt.

This was supposed to have been a ground-breaking year for F1, with a record 22 races on the calendar before the advent of Covid-19.

A minimum of eight races must be staged for a championship to be valid, and with so many grands prix being pushed back or axed, it is getting perilously close to that mark.

However, Vettel does not believe a condensed and diminished schedule will devalue this year's title.

He told the Autosport website yesterday: "Before, we had less races in the past and more races today, but I don't think it makes a big difference.

"Obviously, a season is a season, whether it's 10, 15 or 20, 25 races. So you still have to be the one that is most consistent.

"With less races, every race is more important, but the championship would still be the championship.

"Nobody really knows what to expect from this year, from this season. Maybe this season is going into part of next year as well... we have to be patient and wait."

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE, REUTERS