Mercedes 'prepared to shell-out big amount' in pursuit of Hamilton

London - Mercedes' team principal Ross Brawn has claimed that his board is prepared to pay a big amount to get McLaren star Lewis Hamilton to join the Brackley-based team.

Brawn also hinted that Hamilton could hold the key to Michael Schumacher's future in the sport.

"Lewis is a very good driver, an excellent driver. We don't comment on speculation. When we make our driver decision, you will be the first to hear about it, but it is some way off, " The Telegraph quoted Brawn, as saying.

Earlier, former team owner Eddie Jordan, who now works as a BBC pundit, heightened speculations when he said that Hamilton had already agreed to terms with Mercedes.

Hamilton flatly denied that he had decided his future, but did not deny that his advisers were talking with the Brackley-based team.

"We want to be a team that every driver wants to drive for. We have a tremendous history that we want to live up to, although we haven't quite got there yet. The plans we are making and structure we are putting in place, particularly with the changes in regulations coming in the next couple of years, makes us very ambitious," Brawn said.

"If we achieve what we want to achieve then we will put ourselves in a position where every driver in Formula One will consider driving for us," he added.