It may be that a lower basic salary is accepted which would allow Hamilton
more control of this area.
It is understood that Simon Fuller, XIX’s chief executive, will be in London
in July and August – hoping, amongst other things, to watch his other star
clients David Beckham and Andy Murrary compete at the Olympics – and
negotiations are likely to pick up pace at that point.
With potential vacancies next year at Ferrari and Red Bull, and possibly
Mercedes too, there is always the chance that one of McLaren’s rivals may
make a play for Hamilton or that he could try to engineer a move if he felt
they were more likely to give him a winning car.
Hamilton’s team mate Jenson Button went fastest yesterday in practice for
Sunday’s Monaco Grand Prix but intermittent rain made it difficult to
judge relative pace.
Meanwhile, Lotus have said they will not allow Kimi Raikkonen to take part in
Rally Finland later this summer following their experience with Robert
Kubica last year.
The Pole’s career is on hold following a major crash in a pre-season rally and
Raikkonen’s contract forbids him from taking part in similar
extra-curricular activities.
The 2007 world champion had sought clearance to make a one-off return to the
WRC but was told it would not be possible.