“I know how hard it is to stay at the top” – 103-GP winner Lewis Hamilton reminds Max Verstappen the ’emptiness’ of persistent success

Max Verstappen has taken over from Lewis Hamilton as F1’s best driver on the grid. And with the Dutchman only 25, he could be starting an era of domination in the sport like Hamilton and Mercedes did.

Max broke two huge records on the way to claiming his 2nd World Championship title. He won 15 of 22 races, the most a driver has won in a season and scored 454 points, the highest points tally by a driver.

 

With Red Bull and Verstappen looking strong for a few more years, it is not hard to consider the driver levelling Hamilton’s records. But Lewis feels the view from up top isn’t pretty as it seems.

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Lewis Hamilton cautions Max Verstappen about too much success

While Max Verstappen enjoyed one of the greatest seasons, Lewis Hamilton endured a tough year with Mercedes. Both the team and driver were caught off-guard by the changing regulations and suffered a dip in their performances.

After having enjoyed 103 Race wins and 15 years of continuous victories, the Briton ended 2022 without a win. He was out-qualified by newbie teammate George Russell, who registered the team’s sole win in Brazil.

Hamilton finished P6 in the standings. But the driver believes a tough 2022 allowed him to enjoy racing more after years of success. And something he warns Verstappen will realise soon.

Hamilton said, “I know how hard it is to get to the top and stay there. In the past, we’ve been so successful that it’s left me a little empty and it’s kind of weird because it really is something incredible.”

Mercedes raked up 8 consecutive constructors championships from 2014 to 2021. But the struggles of 2022 have impacted the team’s perspective too, feels Hamilton.

Hamilton feels the team now enjoys the minor successes more. He adds, “Now, we want to return to the top and it is what has given us hope during the final stretch of 2022.”

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Hamilton finds positives in 2022’s difficulties

In 2021, Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton fought till the last lap of the season finale in an epic title decider. However, 2022 was a cruise for the Dutchman as Mercedes was nowhere close to Red Bull.

But Hamilton believes the team got closer after the initial setback and was motivated to fight back for wins. And after the win in Interlagos, the team’s belief in their own capabilities drastically rose.

Lewis recalls the moment after George Russell won the 2022 Brazilian GP as one of the ‘happiest’ moments of the season. And despite not winning a race, he felt the joy and pride everyone else in the team felt after the win.

Lewis said, “After the race in Brazil, with George’s win and my second place, I was incredibly happy with the team’s performance. We have gotten better during 2022 and I do not consider it a disappointing year by any means.”

He adds, “We were fighting for fifth place and everyone was excited, it has been a beautiful experience. We have also experienced the feeling of going up, we were very close. It was something we needed.”

Hamilton is sure that the team can carry the momentum from the season’s end to 2023. And if that happened, we can’t wait to see Lewis back in action to claim his 104th race win.

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