Lewis Hamilton has already had to wave goodbye to £30m because of Max Verstappen

Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen shared an immense rivalry in 2021, but the pair have rarely battled on track since.
Lewis Hamilton has now missed out on his £15 million World Championship bonus for the second season in a row after Max Verstappen claimed his third consecutive title at the Qatar Grand Prix last month.

According to figures from the Daily Mail, Hamilton’s contract makes him the second-best-paid driver on the grid behind Verstappen with the seven-time world champion raking in £27.5m per year, as well as an additional £15m for securing the Drivers’ Championship title.

Unfortunately for Hamilton, he hasn’t come close to securing that extra £15m in the past couple of years. 2022 was a particularly challenging year for the legendary Brit, who ended the campaign in sixth place in the standings, despite climbing onto the podium nine times.

2023 has been an improvement for Hamilton from a personal standpoint with his consistent performances meaning that he heads into the final two rounds of the campaign with a shot – albeit a narrow one – at passing Sergio Perez in the battle for second place in the Drivers’ Championship standings.

Despite this, however, Mercedes remain worlds away from being able to consistently fight Verstappen for victories, let alone for a World Championship, and the team’s inability to understand the behaviour of the W14 is a cause for concern heading into a critical winter of development.

At the United States Grand Prix, the Silver Arrows appeared to have made significant progress with their new floor upgrade, coming in second on the road before Hamilton was eventually disqualified for a technical infraction. This was then reinforced in Mexico City with yet another impressive performance in comparison to McLaren and Ferrari.

Given how strong Hamilton and Mercedes were at Interlagos last year, many predicted that they would challenge Verstappen for the win in Brazil. Rather, it was the worst weekend of the season for the Brackley-based team thus far.

After that performance, Hamilton expressed his disappointment by saying, “I think, ultimately, all I can do is try to remain optimistic.” I believe the Red Bull is quite far away. I believe they will most likely be extremely evident over the coming years.

For yet another season, Verstappen, meanwhile, looks set to irritate Hamilton. Red Bull was able to shift their focus on the 2024 car’s development earlier than their competitor, so the three-time world champion will probably have championship-winning equipment on his back again the following year.