After 16 glorious years in Formula 1, Lewis Hamilton has finally started thinking about life after the sport. The 37-year-old’s contract is about to expire with Mercedes at the end of the 2023 season and the renewal talks seem to be going nowhere as of now. While the stalling of talks, in most certainties, is only temporary, the ultimate reality of once having to retire has just begun to settle into the Briton’s mind.

Out of the 37 years of his life until now, Hamilton dedicated 30 of them to motor racing. 16 of those years he spent in F1 and just the idea of severing himself from the sport is haunting enough. He revealed that and much more about his personality in a recent interview with Jay Shetty.

Speaking on the ‘On Purpose’ podcast, Lewis said, “I love doing what I do. It’s gonna be really, really hard when I’ve stopped racing. I’ve been racing for 30 years. When you start [thinking]: what’s going to match that?”

“Nothing’s going to ever probably match being in the stadium or being at the race and being at the pinnacle of the sport, being at the front of the grid or coming through the grid, that emotion that I get there. When I do stop, there’ll be a big hole.”

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In the same interview, Lewis also talked about his commitment to issues more than just F1. He revealed how he felt the world was more divided now than ever and the terrible occurrences have made it difficult for him to follow the news.

Lewis Hamilton rules out a long-term contract

Hamilton has in the past talked about feeling fitter than ever, and having seen some of his photos on socials, it certainly looks that way. However, he also feels there is a lot more to be done in life and that is the reason he might not push for a long-term contract with Mercedes. That being said, the contract negotiations haven’t started yet.

Speaking with Bild recently, Hamilton told, “We haven’t started yet. So far, there has been no time for this, we were on the road.”

“Sometimes you wake up and have this feeling: ‘I don’t want to do this anymore’. And sometimes you wake up and think: ‘I can do other things all my life, there’s definitely more I want to achieve’. It won’t be a huge time now, but I will definitely stay.”

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How much ever years he might get on possibly his last contract, Lewis will certainly aim for the record-breaking 8th championship title. Nothing less will excite him enough to keep going in the sport.