1996 Formula 1 champion and now Sky Sports pundit, Damon Hill, believes the thought of retiring after the 2018 season is weighing on the mind of Lewis Hamilton.
Despite new reports in recent days that a new contract with Mercedes beyond this year is all but done, while ever the dotted line remains unsigned, there will be some who wonder if should the Brackley-based team start to struggle or even if Hamilton becomes a five-time champion, is he still motivated enough to continue for a few more seasons.
That is the opinion shared by Hill, who is well aware that the 33-year-old has ambitions far beyond the F1 grid.
“He has to really want to race and carry on,” he is quoted by UK newspaper The Sun. “He does have another life he wants to pursue elsewhere.
“Although he did not look like that in Barcelona last week, he looked as though he was really hooked up and enjoys what he is doing and can become champion again, but I wonder if Nico Rosberg’s retirement weighed on his mind a little bit. When you are an F1 driver, you hanker for the days when you can escape from it.
“It is a very tough life for a driver. You start thinking, especially in the mid-30s, about having a weekend off.”
It is not the first time one of Sky Sports’ pundits has put the idea of retirement forward, after the Chinese GP, commentator Martin Brundle posed the thought as to whether Daniel Ricciardo, who is on the market for 2019 and has been linked to Mercedes, could be the man to replace Hamilton rather than teammate Valtteri Bottas.
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Hill, however, believes the Briton is just testing the water with his team.
“Lewis does a very good job of appearing innocent and not understanding but I think he has a very astute mind when it comes to what his power is in the sport,” he claimed.
“He is powerful enough and a precious commodity in the sport and maybe just making them wait and sweat a bit. Mercedes might be sweating.”
