Lewis Hamilton 'almost signed for Sauber' before F1 debut, says Peter Sauber

Former Sauber Formula 1 team owner Peter Sauber has claimed that Lewis Hamilton was close to signing with the Swiss-based team around two decades ago.

The Briton made his F1 debut with McLaren in 2007 and secured his first championship victory a year later in 2008, but according to Sauber, he was close to starting his career in the series with his team before the deal fell through due to contract terms.

"Hardly anyone knows that around 20 years ago, Lewis Hamilton almost drove for us," Sauber told Swiss-German publication Blick.

"The Briton belonged to McLaren, and they wanted to send him to Hinwil for his Formula 1 apprenticeship. So the McLaren delegation met with Lewis and his father, as well as our in-house lawyer Monisha Kaltenborn and myself at Kloten Airport."

Sauber explained that the deal was close to being finalised but McLaren was only prepared to loan the now seven-time champion for a single year.

"The deal fell through because McLaren only wanted to loan him for one year – but we insisted on two!" he added.

Lewis Hamilton, Ferrari

Photo by: Zak Mauger / LAT Images via Getty Images

Hamilton remained at the Woking outfit until the end of the 2012 season, before he signed with Mercedes from 2013. During his time at the Brackley outfit, Hamilton won six of his seven championship titles and helped bring the team eight constructors' championships. 

The 41-year-old driver decided to make the move to Ferrari after a 12-year stint with Mercedes. Arriving at the Maranello outfit ahead of the 2025 season, Hamilton drove alongside Charles Leclerc and reunited with team chief Fred Vasseur, who he had worked with in the junior series, including when he drove for the Frenchman's ART Grand Prix in GP2 (now Formula 2).

While the anticipation was high for Hamilton's arrival at Ferrari, he struggled to adapt to the team in 2025, with his best finishes being a sprint race win in China and fourth-place finishes in the Emilia-Romagna, Austrian, British and United States grands prix.