Sky Sports host Simon Lazenby claims Lewis Hamilton could ditch Mercedes for rivals Ferrari in pursuit of his eighth F1 world title.
Hamilton cut a dejected figure after a shocking start to the new season with Mercedes at the Bahrain Grand Prix. The seven-time world champion finished fifth at the Sakhir circuit, over 50 seconds behind runaway race winner Max Verstappen.
And his frustration was apparent as he went public with his criticism of his team, insisting they ignored his input when developing their new underperforming W14 challenger.
Hamilton had concerns the Silver Arrows were "on the wrong track" before lights out in Bahrain and his fears were realised with the huge gulf in performance levels with dominant Red Bull, while Mercedes boss Toto Wolff lamented 'one of his worst days in racing.'
Such troubles at Mercedes have fuelled speculation that Hamilton's future could be elsewhere on the paddock as the veteran bids to win a record-breaking eighth championship crown.
The 38-year-old's contract with the Brackley-based team expires at the end of the season, with rumours circling that he was not prepared to commit to a fresh deal before seeing just how competitive his new W14 machine was.
And lead Sky Sports presenter Lazenby believes Hamilton could make a shock switch to Ferrari if Mercedes fail to arrest their worrying slide.
"Not to Aston, but how can you rule out a move to Ferrari if [Mercedes] stay like this?" Lazenby said on Sky's F1 podcast. "He's so desperate for that eighth, that if Ferrari did manage to stay on the coattails and they were the nearest to Red Bull.
"He's not put his pen to paper yet on his contract. He's definitely waiting to see how this year's car felt. I think the great relationship with the team and Toto [Wolff] will endure but I don't think you can ever rule out a move to Ferrari for racing drivers because it's their dream and he's said it before."
Mercedes will be desperate for an upturn in performance at the Saudi Arabia Grand Prix this weekend, while Ferrari are expected to once again be among the closest challengers to standard-setting leaders Red Bull.
