Leaving many fans emotional and even his biggest adversary on the court, Roger Federer bid goodbye to tennis last year. Perhaps the greatest player the sport has ever seen played his last in the Laver Cup. That was far from an ideal farewell, given his stature. For a purist, the perfect moment would have been the sight of watching him deliver his farewell speech standing on the center court of the Wimbledon Arena, holding the winner’s trophy. If one was to draw a parallel between his career with someone from F1, Lewis Hamilton is the first name that comes to mind. If that certainly is the case, the Briton could be on the path to the same fate as Roger.

Federer announced his retirement a week ahead of the start of the Laver Cup last year. He put out an audio post on Twitter where he told the tournament would be his last. Back then, Hamilton paid him a heartfelt tribute while crowning himself as the Roger Federer of F1.

Is Lewis Hamilton headed for the same fate as Roger Federer?

Federer won his last Wimbledon title in 2017 and picked the Australian Open winner’s trophy next year. For some time, he even held the number 1 position but knew well that his best was behind him. Despite that, he didn’t pick a high point to hang up his boots.

During the 2021 Abu Dhabi GP, Hamilton came as close as he could to the coveted, never-achieved-before 8th world championship title. However, an erroneous decision from race director Michael Masi stopped him from taking that. But had the result on that fateful night gone in his favor, would he have retired on a high? Many, including F1 journalist Christian Nimmervoll, doubt that.

Federer kept trying to get back on top till the very last. Hamilton currently finds himself in the same boat. Ever since the introduction of the ground-effect regulations, Mercedes has been left coping. The Briton is just nowhere near to winning the championship again but also lost out to his own teammate, George Russell, on points last year.

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Hamilton is 38 now and the next realistic chance at winning the title will come in 2026 when another new set of regulations will come into play. But is he willing to wait for that long? Or will he fall prey to the same fate as Federer? Only time will tell.

Will Hamilton team up with Max Verstappen as Federer did with Rafael Nadal to end his career?

After slugging it out their entire career against each other, Roger joined hands with Rafael Nadal for his last game. At the end of it, both left the arena in tears. Will fierce rivals of F1- Hamilton and Max Verstappen ever do that?

Given how much Mercedes is struggling, it would not be surprising to find out if the Stevenage man has already started looking for opportunities elsewhere. The team that is currently the front-runner to take him to glory is certainly Max’s Red Bull. But will that move ever come to fruition? Highly unlikely.

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But F1 is a sport of uncertainties. You never know what’s happening behind the scenes. Who knows, perhaps the newborn rivalry between Verstappen and Sergio Perez could see Red Bull show the Mexican driver the exit door. And if that happens around the same time when Hamilton is looking to move on from the Silver Arrows, we might just see him share a garage with his sworn rival.