Formula 1: Most people share the same belief about Lewis Hamilton

Will Lewis Hamilton retire before the 2022 Formula 1 season begins? Has he already made up his mind? Most fans share the same belief.

Lewis Hamilton’s future — or lack thereof — in Formula 1 has been a major subject of debate throughout the offseason after the way he saw what would have been a record-breaking eighth world championship slip away on the final lap of the 2021 season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix at Yas Marina Circuit back on Sunday, December 12.

Following a controversial restart with one lap remaining, he was overtaken by Max Verstappen going into turn five of the 16-turn, 3.281-mile (5.280-kilometer) road course.

Verstappen held off two serious challenges from Hamilton throughout the remainder of the lap and won the race having led only that lap, netting him his first career championship after the two rivals entered the 22nd and final race of the year level on points. Hamilton finished in second place after leading 51 of 58 laps.

Hamilton spoke to Sky Sports immediately after the race ended, though since then, he has gone silent.

He has not made any public comments whatsoever since the heartbreaking end to the season brought his four-year run of world titles to an end over a month and a half ago, and his most recent posts on social media are the photos he shared after qualifying alongside Verstappen on the front row the day before.

This has led some to question whether he will actually return to Formula 1 for the 2022 season. He signed a two-year extension to remain with Mercedes through the 2023 season over the summer, but team principal Toto Wolff admitted that he felt “disillusioned” over how the end of the 2021 season was handled and could very well decide not to return because of its effects.

Mercedes already made one driver change for 2022, replacing the Alfa Romeo-bound Valtteri Bottas with Williams driver George Russell. Bottas had replaced Nico Rosberg after Rosberg’s unexpected retirement following his 2016 world championship, and he helped the team win five constructor titles in five years.

Could they be forced to make a second change and complete a lineup overhaul as they go for an unprecedented ninth straight title?

Despite the uncertainty surrounding Hamilton’s future, however, most Formula 1 fans and pundits do believe that he will be coming back.

And instead of listening to and getting caught up in all of the outside noise about how we may have seen the last of the 37-year-old Briton on-track, the rest of the grid better prepare themselves accordingly, because Hamilton has proven to be at his best when faced with adversity before. He isn’t one to shy away from a tough situation.

While it’s probably a stretch to call the 103-time race winner’s silence an “act”, considering just how the final lap of the 2021 season went down and how he must have felt — and must still feel — because of it, we’re at the point where it’s hard to imagine him not having made up his mind, with preseason testing scheduled to get underway later this month at Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya. So maybe, to some extent, it is an act.

Wolff’s comments are certainly not to be taken lightly, but everything else that the Silver Arrows have shared seems to point toward him returning for a 10th year, even amid consistent rumors linking other drivers to his seat in the event of a, dare we say, surprise retirement. One report even indicated that he has communicated with the team that he will be back in 2022.

And to be honest, we don’t really need formal confirmation if he is to return, given his contract; the only “formal confirmation” would likely be a retirement announcement, and as we quickly approach the start of the new season, you’d be hard-pressed to find someone who truly doesn’t believe he’ll be back in 2022.

He is even still listed as the betting favorite to win the 2022 world championship at +155 ahead of Verstappen at +200 and Russell at +475, which would not be the case otherwise.

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The 23-race 2022 season is officially scheduled to begin on Sunday, March 20 with the Bahrain Grand Prix at Bahrain International Circuit.

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