Martin Brundle reveals what he's heard about Lewis Hamilton's Ferrari contract and what he must do to stay in F1

Martin Brundle has revealed what he knows about a key clause in Lewis Hamilton's Ferrari contract ahead of the 2026 F1 season.

Hamilton endured his worst ever F1 season in 2025, failing to score a podium for the first time ever in his career compared to the seven scored by his Ferrari teammate Charles Leclerc.

The seven-time world champion finished in sixth place in the driver standings, six points ahead of Kimi Antonelli in seventh, and 86 points behind Leclerc in fifth.

Luckily for Hamilton, 2026 has pressed the biggest reset button in F1 history, with completely new chassis and power unit regulations, giving every driver a fresh start.

Speaking exclusively to SPORTbible, Sky Sports F1 commentator Brundle explained the new regulations could provide the perfect opportunity for Hamilton to bounce back.

"I think there's a lot of scope with these new cars to work with your team, there's a lot of tools in them to go faster, a lot of opportunity.

Lewis Hamilton preparing to test the SF-26 in Bahrain with Ferrari (credit: getty)

"I think the smart guys will, whether they like the cars or not, and the new regulations or not, they will think, right, there's opportunity here to work the systems better than the other drivers."

Brundle believes the more natural drivers will thrive in 2026, due to their ability to multitask during the intensity of a Formula One grand prix.

"I think it's whichever driver's got the capacity, some spare capacity to think about the systems," the 66-year-old said.

"If the greats like Lewis and Max need 70% of their capacity to just drive the car, that leaves 30% to think about what's going on around them and strategy and read the racetrack, read the weather or whatever.

"Whereas the merely very good, might need 75% of their capacity to actually drive the car, and they've got less available to work out all the other systems. But it's still going to be all about who's fastest around corners and who's best on the brakes."

Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen speaking to the media at 2026 Bahrain testing (credit: getty)

Brundle reveals Hamilton has '2028 option' at Ferrari

Ferrari never publicly confirmed Hamilton's contract length when he arrived last year, but reliable sources at the time reported the Brit signed a two year deal with the option of a third heading into 2027.

However, Brundle's belief is that the 41-year-old's current contract could keep him in scarlet red overalls until the conclusion of the 2028 season.

"I don't think Lewis would have gone to Ferrari without a longer-term fixed contract than that, (two years + one) and my understanding is that he might even have a unilateral option on 2028."

However, Brundle admitted that Hamilton must improve his performances if he is to see out his contract, with the Ferrari man only getting out of Q1 on one occasion in the last four grand prix of 2025.

Brundle believes Hamilton has to match Leclerc's pace throughout the season, after being handed a 18-3 head-to-head defeat to the Monegasque in grands prix last season.

"It's not going to be a question of Lewis just being quite close to Charles, he's got to be right on Leclerc's pace or ahead of him," Brundle said.

"At the level of sport we're at at the moment, teams don't carry passengers in any way, shape or form.

Lewis Hamilton in 2026 (credit: getty)

"Not that Lewis is ever going to be one of those, but at the same time, you've got to be delivering."

Despite claiming Hamilton's performances in 2026 will be key to him staying in the sport, Brundle believes any decision on potential retirement will be a personal one and not made by Ferrari.

Brundle added: "Everybody's got to be delivering and enjoying it, but I believe it will be Lewis who makes those decisions.

"So if Lewis stops in 2026 or 2027, I think it would be his decision because he's not enjoying it anymore and he's not getting the results he needs, but that's premature to even think about that.

"Let's see how he does this year and year two at Ferrari," Brundle concluded.

Sky Sports is the home of Formula 1 in the UK & Ireland. Don’t miss the start of the 2026 World Championship live from Melbourne, Australia, March 06-8th, on Sky Sports and NOW.