Hamilton Rejects Retirement Talk as Rosberg Doubts Title

Lewis Hamilton has shut down talk of a Formula 1 retirement, insisting he remains fully committed even as Nico Rosberg doubts Ferrari and Hamilton are yet at championship-winning level.

Hamilton was emphatic when asked about speculation over his future. “I’m still fully in it and I’m still motivated,” the Ferrari driver said. “My contract is still on, so is all crystal clear. I still love what I do with all my heart, and I’ll be here for quite some time, so you better get used to it.” He added that while “many people” were trying to send him into retirement, he was “not even thinking” about it and was already focused on what comes next.

The noise around Hamilton’s future grew after the Miami Grand Prix, when he complained about Ferrari’s simulator, but his recent results have pushed back against that narrative. In Canada, he delivered what was described as the best grand prix result of his Ferrari career, and he now sits fourth in the drivers’ standings on 72 points, only three behind team-mate Charles Leclerc on 75. At the same stage of last season, Hamilton had 31 points, and in 2024 he had 19.

That upturn has not convinced Rosberg that an eighth title is within reach. Speaking on the High Performance Podcast, the 2016 world champion said Hamilton has clearly improved in his second Ferrari campaign and predicted he would win at least one race this year, but stopped well short of backing a title run.

“I think he will win a race at least this year,” Rosberg said. “But to get the championship, the car is not good enough, and his level is not quite there yet.”

Rosberg said the new regulations have helped Hamilton look stronger than he did in his first Ferrari season, but argued the internal benchmark remains a major problem. Leclerc, he said, is “at the peak of his ability” and “one of the greatest drivers of this generation,” making Hamilton’s task inside Ferrari as demanding as the wider title fight.

That leaves Hamilton in a clear but difficult position heading deeper into the season: he has rejected any suggestion that he is nearing the end, yet the standard required for the record-breaking eighth championship, in Rosberg’s view, still depends on both Ferrari and Hamilton finding another step.