At the end of the 2022 Formula 1 season, Lewis Hamilton found himself in an unfamiliar place, a winless season for the first time in his illustrious career meant he finished sixth in the Championship, his worst finish since his journey in the top flight began in 2007 and beaten by his younger teammate George Russell.
Indeed early in the season, 37-year-old Hamilton was all but AWOL, going through the motions as the reality of not having a race-winning car in the Mercedes W13 dawned, and took the early races to deal with the situation; while he beat Russell at the season opener in Bahrain, thereafter he hit a gloomy patch and never headed his teammate again.
However, as the season progressed Hamilton found commitment to the cause again and reemerged to deliver a solid, second half of the season. Nevertheless, apart from zero wins in 2022, his reality was that Russell ended the year fourth in the Championship standings with a first win to his credit.
In the Sky F1 pundits’ review of the past F1 season, Karun Chandhok makes interesting observations regarding Hamilton’s campaign, one which will be remembered for Max Verstappen and Red Bull dethroning Sir Lewis and Mercedes, while humbling Ferrari in the process too.
Former F1 driver turned pundit, Chandhok suggests that Russell’s good form and consistently finishing high up in the points was a reality check for Hamilton: “At the start of the year, it was looking really good for Russell, he was regularly outqualifying Lewis. I think he had a bit of a wake-up call in that middle part of the year when Lewis lifted his game, and I think George went on a run where he couldn’t get ahead. I think he thought ‘woah, I’ve woken the beast!
“Lewis, I’m sure his motivation wasn’t there and I can understand that. It reminded me of Senna in 1993, this was a guy who was the number one driver of his generation, he arrives at the opening race and goes: God, I’m only capable of qualifying on the third row of the grid. Where’s the motivation?
“Then we got to Barcelona, they turned a little bit of the corner and he rose to the challenge,” recalled Chandhok of pace unlocked by Mercedes at that point in the season. “But to his credit, towards the end of the year – and that weekend and win in Brazil was the standout – he came back.
Chandhok: Lewis is the king of the castle and has been this generation
As for the difference between Mercedes and Red Bull in 2022, Chandhok said: “They put a huge amount of resources in 2021 yet still developed a car that was quick in 2022, and that’s what Mercedes couldn’t do.”
Finally, Chandhok also dipped into how different Verstappen tackles opponents other than Hamilton, the pair regularly rubbing paint, touching or crashing into each other, while the rules of engagement the Red Bull driver displays towards other rivals are far milder, even comparatively placid.
“Lewis is the king of the castle and has been this generation,” reckoned Chandhok. “Max felt that he had to assert himself against Lewis, knock him off his throne. Whereas he sees Charles, George [Russell], Carlos [Sainz] as his peers and that’s why he races them differently.”
Hamilton has 310 Grand Prix starts on his CV, finishing on the podium on 191 of those occasions, as a winner 103 times, making him one of the all-time greats of the sport. While, no doubt, still the Kingpin at Mercedes, Russell is very much the Crown Prince, the team’s future leader in the making.
For now, it has been harmonious between the pair, respect is mutual as they collectively chase Red Bull and Verstappen, but if Mercedes produce a regular race-winning car for the pair, when (and if) they are again the tip of the F1 performance needle, and when George or Lewis are the drivers to beat, who will beat who?
Like us, Karun can’t wait for the 2023 F1 season to find out: “I’m fascinated to see how those two are together next year.”