When a driver as legendary as Lewis Hamilton drives for your team, there is little to worry about. However, there are things that happen outside the racing track that are beyond the control of the team bosses. Drivers often engage in activities outside of F1 like skiing, mountain climbing, and sky diving.
These are all fun activities but are potentially risky in case of an accident. When asked in a podcast about whether Hamilton engaging in such activities bothers him or not, Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff insisted that he is not.
Wolff does not get tensed about Hamilton injuring himself because according to him, the latter is very capable of taking care of anything that is thrown at him. Wolff compared Hamilton to ‘that kid in school’ who always manages to take care of everything. The fact that Hamilton is good at everything means that the Austrian is at ease.
“I think whatever you give him,” Wolff said. “Whether it’s a snowboard, a tennis ball, penguins, he’s gonna be good at it. And that’s why I’m never worried.”
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Is 2023 Lewis Hamilton’s last year at Mercedes?
Hamilton joined Mercedes in 2013, in a move that many people doubted. However, his arrival at the Silver Arrows kickstarted an era of dominance seldom seen in F1, as he ended up winning six world championships in eight years.
Hamilton last signed a contract extension in 2020, one that tied him to the Brackley-based outfit until the 2023 season. Now that the 2023 season is just about to start, fans have began to wonder if it will be his last year with Mercedes.
Rumors of Hamilton renewing his contract with Mercedes have emerged over the last few months, but an official announcement is pending. However, recent reports have stated that Hamilton has already signed a new bumper deal with the team that will keep him in Brackley for a further two years and make him the highest paid driver in F1.
Lewis Hamilton wants 2023 to be his bounceback year
Keeping talks of his contract renewal aside, Hamilton is fully focused on making 2023 a year where he bounces back from a disastrous 2022 campaign. He took a lot of time to get up to speed with the W13, and was outperformed by teammate George Russell for a large part of the season.
This year, Hamilton is hoping that the W14 is fast enough to compete for wins on a regular basis. Pre-season testing, however, did not go Mercedes’ way with reports suggesting that they are currently fourth in the pecking order behind Red Bull, Ferrari and Aston Martin.
Hamilton will be looking forward to what the workers back in Brackley can do to develop the car and make sure he competes at the front in 2023.
