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Lewis Hamilton recently admitted that he does not necessarily feel the desire to be in F1 any longer than he already has. Talking about his future in the sport, Hamilton also stated that if he manages to win his eighth world championship, it wouldn't mean the end of his career.
The Mercedes driver made his F1 debut in 2007, piloting McLaren's title-contending car and almost winning the drivers' championship in his rookie season.
After losing the title in the last race of 2007, Lewis Hamilton reversed his fortunes by winning the title in the last race of 2008. The British driver moved to Mercedes in 2013, which turned out to be a career-defining move for him and an era-defining one for the sport.
Mercedes dominated the grid from 2014 to 2020 and Hamilton won six more world titles, taking his tally to a record-equaling seven.
After two unsuccessful years, 2022 and 2023, Hamilton feels there isn't necessarily a desire for him to remain active in F1. He told Formule1:
“I never said that an eighth title would be the end point. And I don't know what follows after driving in Formula 1. I don't necessarily feel the desire to remain active in Formula 1 any longer, but as I said before: never say 'never'."
Hamilton added:
"I can't imagine not riding anymore and still being in a pit box somewhere. I would probably think: 'I could stick with it for another year, then I could still participate.' So it would probably be better to take a sabbatical and then see if I would still like to come back.”
Lewis Hamilton not surprised with F1 legends coming back from retirement
When questioned if he was surprised by Sebastian Vettel expressing an interest in returning to F1, the Mercedes driver admitted that it was not much of a surprise for him as this has often happened in the history of the sport.
Talking about the example of Fernando Alonso, who recently returned to F1, or Michael Schumacher in the 2010s, Lewis Hamilton said:
“It didn't surprise me, because you see it more often with retired drivers. Fernando Alonso came back, Michael Schumacher too. I have also seen it with athletes from other sports and have spoken to a few about it. They said, 'You're losing something you've done all your life. Suddenly it's gone.' Then you can miss it and I can imagine that it is an incredible hole to fall into.”
It will be interesting to see what happens with Lewis Hamilton's future if Mercedes fail to build a car capable of competing for the title next season.
