20 February 2023 , 18:21
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Another winless year for Lewis Hamilton might encourage the Mercedes star to call time on his Formula 1 career.
That is the belief of Jenson Button – another British F1 champion. He won his one and only title with Brawn GP in the 2009 season and, eight years later, decided to leave the grid as his McLaren team struggled for competitiveness.
Hamilton endured one of the most difficult seasons of his F1 career last year, and failed to win a single race as Mercedes gave him a less competitive car. That struggle appears to have lit a fire in the seven-time champion's belly, but Button believes another year out of the title running could have an entirely different effect.
"It's something we all go through in our careers," he said when discussing Hamilton's difficult 2022 season. "It's a reason why a lot of people retire, they are not in a winning car anymore. That's why I left.
"You can deal with the pressure you put yourself under and the calendar, if you are in a winning car. When you are not, you are like 'I've had enough, I want to get out'. Mercedes have given him a winning car for so many years. Last year obviously didn't but the car did win a race last year, so you would say at the end of the year they were strong.
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"I think Lewis was on it. His performances were very consistent, mid-to-end of the season, very, very quick. I think he'll start this year flat-out. He's going to be on it from the word go, so I look forward to seeing that."
It remains to be seen whether the W14 created by Mercedes for this year's championship will allow Hamilton and George Russell to compete for regular race wins again. Without knowing the answer to that question himself, the 38-year-old says the Silver Arrows have nothing to prove to him.
Jenson Button thinks Lewis Hamilton will retire if Mercedes remain unable to challenge for the title (Getty Images)He said at last week's car launch event: "I feel like we have proved time and time again over the years we have strength in depth. We have all these incredibly talented individuals in the team – we don't lose that ability.
"We continue to try and improve our processes, we continue to try and be smarter in how we approach things and with our communication. I think this is the best harmony within the team I have seen in all these years. We have a fresh young group of people and engineers, it is an exciting time for the team and I don't plan on being anywhere else.
"This is family to me. It is no coincidence we have won world championships in the past, you don't just all of a sudden lose the ability to do so. I have the utmost confidence in all the people I have been around.
"I think last year I was bullish because they were bullish, we had big upgrades coming but obviously it was a shock to all of us, so I think this year everyone is a lot more grounded. More the approach of we, perhaps, won't be the fastest out the gate but we have the potential to close the gap early on in the season."