If there’s one event that still hurts Lewis Hamilton, Toto Wolff, and Mercedes fans, it’s the 2021 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. The race that prevented Lewis Hamilton from being the Greatest of All Time has also been the race to introduce Max Verstappen as a world champion. Admittedly, the 2021 season has been a whole Max Verstappen versus Lewis Hamilton, unlike 2022. But, now, in 2023, Mercedes expects to make a huge comeback with the latest W14. If everything works as planned, Max Verstappen got no chance against a resilient Lewis Hamilton, believes Toto Wolff.

During the official livery launch by Mercedes, team principal Toto Wolff emphasized having the much anticipated eighth title for Hamilton. Wolff shared to Sky Sports, “I don’t think this is about closure for him or not, I think an eighth title would be wonderful because he deserves to have that eighth title.”

“There’s only him and Michael [Schumacher] who have seven, but it’s more about doing what he loves and what he does best. And if we can provide him with a good car, there’s nothing in between him and an eighth title,” further stated the Austrian executive in a report published by The Express.

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After 2021, the Brackley-based team expected to back Lewis Hamilton in his quest for the eighth title. However, things didn’t go as planned in 2022, as the Silver Arrows failed to produce a car that could stop Max Verstappen and Red Bull. In return, Verstappen retained the world championship as well as helped Red Bull clinch the constructors’ championship.

Toto Wolff revealed contract talks with Lewis Hamilton

Lewis Hamilton is all set to start the 2023 F1 season with the latest and “sexiest” W14. This will be his 17th back-to-back season in the sport, and 11th with the Silver Arrows. However, the Briton has quite some time with the team. But before the contract runs out, Toto Wolff wants to have negotiations with Hamilton.

“Talks have always been going okay. We’ve done it three times now. We’re just changing a sentence, a word, or a number here and there, so all is going to be good,” Wolff told during the livery launch.

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As it stands, the upcoming 2023 F1 season is expected to be a feisty clash between Mercedes, Red Bull, and Ferrari. If everything goes according to the plan by every team, we can expect to see three headers all the way from Bahrain to Abu Dhabi, a rare sight in the post-hybrid era.