Source: Williams Racing Twitter
1996 F1 champion Damon Hill says he believes Lewis Hamilton’s “ambition” to ‘get back’ his eighth title is “burning very, very deep inside of him”.
Lewis Hamilton’s current Mercedes contract will expire at the end of 2022. Considering he is now 38 years old, many observers have started speculating on when he might decide to hang up his helmet.
“He’s thinking about retiring already,” 1996 F1 champion Damon Hill said during his appearance on Sky Sports.
“At 38, he’s already talked about being one of the oldest guys. You’re looking towards the end of your career – everybody knows that as a racing driver you can’t go on forever.
“But he’s so fit and committed and has kept himself in good shape.”
However, Hill believes Lewis is still strongly motivated to win his eighth world title, especially after being denied an almost certain title win, under controversial circumstances, at the 2021 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
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“It’s the mind, it’s whether you’re mentally able to cope with getting yourself on a plane, getting to a hotel and going to a race when you think it’s probably not going to be a competitive car.
“That is the key. If that car gives him a sniff of a chance of victory, then he’ll be there. But it’s when it gets harder that it’s a bit more difficult to think long term.
“A racing driver needs a carrot, and the world championship is a big carrot, but the eighth world title for Lewis and that meaning that he is undisputedly the most successful Grand Prix driver of all time on championships – that is a huge carrot.
“I think he came out of not winning it in Abu Dhabi two years ago and he thought, ‘I’m going to get it back’.
“And I always think that ambition is burning very, very deep inside of him,” Hill concluded.
