Sebastian Vettel once said that Lewis Hamilton had been creating history by creating magic on track. However, the tables absolutely turned when the 2022 regulations kicked in. Mercedes lost their edge in the sport and Hamilton, who has a record number of wins to his name, went an entire season without one. To add to that, he finished behind George Russell. But the question remains, is the 7x champ finished yet?

The answer to that is a big no. Looking at the man’s history and experience, one should understand that he is not done yet. Lewis Hamilton redeemed himself after he claimed a P2 at Albert Park. However, it was a feat which saw his teammate bow out. But the 2022 stint where Russell became the only man to claim a win for Mercedes will be remembered for a long time as the one who outperformed Hamilton. Tom Clarkson of F1 Nation Podcast believes that the Mercedes champ has a secret ace up his sleeve. And Damon Hill agrees.

Clarkson believes the sense of security that Hamilton is giving Russell may be misleading. As quoted by F1 Maximaal, he said, “With every question asked of Mercedes after qualifying, Hamilton loved to let Russell speak. Russell kind of became the spokesperson for the conversation and it was interesting to see Hamilton just kind of lounge around and allow it.”

And then the podcaster revealed what Hamilton perhaps is actually doing by being quiet before he makes a comeback. He said, “I don’t know if it was a strategy, if he wanted to give Russell more confidence so he doesn’t see it coming if Hamilton suddenly strikes in the future, or if it was subconscious”

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Ex-F1 champion Damon Hill believes Formula 1 is a “political game” and Hamilton, who has stayed at the helm of the sport, knows what he is doing. Lewis, who has already proved his worth to the world and team now sits back whereas Russell, the new man in the team, has to work hard to establish himself.

Beating Lewis Hamilton is a big compliment for Russell

While Lewis was busy collecting data for the Brackley outfit, Russell was seen pulling a one up on him. And Sky Sports F1 Pundit believes that defeating Lewis is not an easy task. But like Clarkson above, discounting Lewis won’t be the right call. However, Russell is definitely capable of taking the team ahead when Hamilton finally decides to hang his boots.

Sky Sports F1’s Martin Brundle was quoted by Motorsport.com as saying, “There’s very little difference between Lewis and George, and that’s a big compliment for George, we know how smart, motivated Lewis is. This shows for Mercedes that if, say, Lewis retires or decides to leave the team at any point, George is really up for the job.”

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Do you think the Silver Arrows can produce a race-winning car soon enough? If so, who do you think will emerge as the winner between Lewis Hamilton and George Russell?