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Former Mercedes boss Ross Brawn reckons Lewis Hamilton faces a 'character test' driving a car that's not the best on the grid.
Brawn has worked with many top drivers over the years. He was with Michael Schumacher at Benetton and won titles with him in 1994 and 1995. He followed Schumacher to Ferrari and won five consecutive titles between 2000 and 2004.
After leaving the Italian team, Brawn won the driver and constructor titles with Brawn GP (Honda) as a team owner in 2009. He worked with Hamilton in 2013 at Mercedes before leaving the team. Brawn is currently working as a sporting director for F1 and is one of the key personnel responsible for new F1 regulations.
With the new regulations in play, Mercedes and Hamilton have been on the back foot. Mercedes are no more the benchmark for the grid and are yet to win a race this season.
In an interaction with F1Insider, Brawn said that Hamilton faces a character test, as he has a car that 'cannot win'. He said:
"Lewis is in the twilight of his career. But that doesn't mean it's over yet. This year, for an extremely long time, he has had a car that he cannot win with. So he puts a lot of energy into changing that. For him, this time is a kind of character test. It may well be that his teammate George Russell is hungrier in the races as a result."
Brawn compared the Briton's situation with Schumacher's at Mercedes, where the German sacrificed himself to build a championship-winning juggernaut. He said:
"You can compare Lewis' situation a bit with Michael's comeback with Mercedes. As a driver, you always have to decide whether you want to be part of the solution or part of the problem."
He continued:
"Michael redefined his role back then, so he was part of the solution and helped build the team that would go on to win eight straight Constructors' titles. He sacrificed himself for the future of the team, so to speak, and played a key role in laying the foundation for its success."
Hamilton (168) is out of the title race going into the Singapore GP this weekend, trailing leader Max Verstappen (335) by over 150 points.
Lewis Hamilton will come back stronger - Ross Brawn
Ross Brawn has said that Lewis Hamilton has it in him to come back stronger after a tough season.
The Briton has not won a race this season and is sixth in the standings. This is the lowest he finds himself in the driver standings since the 2013 season. Backing the 37-year-old to come back stronger, Brawn said:
"Lewis will come back. I'm convinced, just like his team. I believe that periods of weakness that you have to overcome makes you even stronger. I know that from my own expirience."
It will be interesting to see how the seven-time champion fares after an underwhelming season by his staggering standards.
