“It’s not that long a time to get everything done and organised and sorted.

“It is in the offing, it is being discussed, it is being done. It’s just not quite done yet.”

Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff has maintained confidence that Hamilton will sign a new contract with the Silver Arrows.

However, in December, Wolff insisted an agreement needs to be in place before pre-season testing begins at the start of March.