A few months ago, Mika Hakkinen said, “When people get older, the order of your thoughts changes. Your priorities in life change. Lewis’ head is not 100 percent in racing anymore.” Formula 1 is a taxing sport, both physically and mentally, and Lewis Hamilton has devoted 17 years of his life to it. 17 years that are set to become 19 by the end of 2025 following his two-year extension with Mercedes. But there will come a time when everyone will have to accept that Hamilton is almost at the end of his F1 road. Has he already started hinting at a retirement?

“Does Lewis have enough energy to wake up every morning, give his everything, and bring results so he can beat his teammate?” added Hakkinen. His teammate. George Russell. Recently, he’s been Hamilton’s biggest headache. Has the young Brit pushed Hamilton to a point of no return after their on-track tussles?

Russell is putting Hamilton’s love for F1 to the test

2021 was a tough year for Hamilton. Not only did he lose the championship to Max Verstappen, but he also knew it would be the end of the balance at Mercedes as he knew it. With Valtteri Bottas in the team, there was this harmony between him and Hamilton. When Mercedes opened up to Russell joining Mercedes, the seven-time champion opposed it. He could practically see a rivalry and implosion coming with Russell. When the 25-year-old did join the team, everything was under control until the Japanese GP. 

For four seasons from 2013 to 2016, Hamilton had this explosive rivalry with Nico Rosberg. Well, something similar is sparking between Hamilton and Russell now. Two weeks ago in Suzuka, the Mercedes boys should’ve been fighting the Ferraris. Instead, they were fighting each other on track. The sparks of that rivalry carried over to Qatar last weekend. What happened? They collided on Lap 1 while going into Turn 1, ending Hamilton’s race then and there. Although the seven-time champion took full responsibility for the crash, could this imbalance be affecting his post-retirement choices?

In an interview at the Qatar GP, Hamilton was asked if he’d like to race in Le Mans or Dakar after F1. He replied, “I currently have zero feelings to do those things. I love motorbikes. I’ve always loved MotoGP, still love it today. I have two superbikes. I’ll probably take my bikes out. I won’t compete professionally, I don’t think, ever again.” Motorsport is very competitive, and having already gotten his dose of fiery rivalries and battles, Hamilton may not be up to putting himself through all of it again. 

Read More: Not for Ugly George Russell Crash, Lewis Hamilton Slapped With $52,000 Reprimand by FIA for Life-Threatening Error

While Hamilton is certain he won’t race—at least professionally—after retiring from F1, his 2021 rival has a lot of post-F1 racing aspirations.

Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen are opposites

Verstappen is one of those drivers who lives and breathes racing. Although Hamilton is fully devoted to and will put in his very best until he’s in F1, he’s made it abundantly clear that he isn’t interested in a post-F1 professional racing career. That’s where Hamilton and Verstappen differ. Apart from actual racing, Verstappen is also a fan of sim racing. He recently revealed he is looking to form a two-car GT3 racing team solely for sim racers to give them an opportunity to enter professional, competitive racing. You can’t rule out the possibility that he’d give it a go himself. 

Discussing this on the On Track GP Podcast, Le Mans winner Richard Bradley said, “Max wants to do Le Mans one day. [GT racing] is the perfect way to get into it. Also, with GT racing, you don’t have the aerodynamic effects of the same level you do in Formula 1. So you don’t get the dirty air, the turbulence effect. So the racing is unbelievable.” Host Matisse Armani replied, “I’m quite interested to see how that gets along for Max. I’m excited to see his character development outside of an F1 car. I feel like there’s still a lot of potential and a lot of unseen sides of Max that we don’t know yet.” 

Do you think there are any unsees sides of Lewis Hamilton that we’ll get to see after he retires from F1?

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