Lewis Hamilton said on Thursday that he is not too upset at the prospect of team chief Ross Brawn leaving Mercedes.
Amid widespread rumours and reports that the Briton was set to leave, Hamilton said he believed his and the team's chances of success would not be seriously hit if he decided to go.
"We have had a great working relationship and I don't believe any decisions have really been made yet," said Hamilton.
"But I think either way we have a strong set of people in the team.
"I know Niki (Lauda), Toto (Wolff), Ross and everyone in the team will do the utmost to make sure that whatever decision he makes, we go into next year with a fighting chance to win the championship."
Mercedes' non-executive chairman Lauda this week insisted that nothing was finalised, despite claims reported by the BBC, adding that he was not expecting final discussions with Brawn to take place until after the Brazilian Grand Prix next month.
When Hamilton last year signed for Mercedes, Brawn was team principal and the subsequent restructuring that brought in Wolff, Lauda and technical chief Paddy Lowe had not taken place.
He denied that he would be disheartened if Brawn left the team.
"When I made my decision it was based on a lot more things than just Ross," he added. "It was a bonus to have Ross here, because of how much experience he had and the success he had had in previous teams.
"At the time he was the one who came and showed me the progress that the team was making and the direction they were going.
"But, again, that would be the position of any boss -- to have done that."
Source: AFP
