Lewis Hamilton explains how he spent off season trying to 'evolve as a driver'

Lewis Hamilton has admitted that he has been using the off-season to improve and evolve as a driver.

The seven-time world champion endured one of his toughest F1 campaigns to date in 2022 as Mercedes tried to get to grips with the temperamental W13 with no wins or pole positions for the first time since his debut in 2007.

Last season, Hamilton finished in P6 in the World Drivers' Championship standings with 240 points to his name. He was also convincingly beaten by his teammate George Russell with a double-digit point gap for the first time since Jenson Button outshone him at McLaren in 2011.

Heading into the new 2023 season, the 38-year-old feels reinvigorated and ready to take the fight to the rest of the field when the lights go out in Sakhir next month.

Speaking following the launch of the new Mercedes W14, the Briton explained that both he and the team have spent time introspecting in the lead-up to the new season. He said:

“I think not only as a team do we have to look at ourselves as a team and how we function, but I know ultimately I’m hired by the team. I have to look at how I operate, how I communicate, how I’d use my time and how I deliver results."

Lewis Hamilton revealed that he has logged a considerable amount of hours on the simulator as the new season draws ever closer. He went on to add:

“So I had to continue to be very critical of myself, to be able to understand where the bar is and where the goalposts are moving all the time. How you can evolve as a driver, that’s something I’m very, very focussed on."

"I’ve done more simulator running than I’ve ever done for the past 18 months, more time with engineers, more going over data and just continuously looking to see how you can evolve as a driver."

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Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton keen to prolong his F1 career with focus and new practices

Lewis Hamilton has no plans to slow down just yet and is still hoping to prolong his F1 career, amid continuing speculation about a possible contract extension with Mercedes.

Speaking in an interview during the launch event of the Mercedes W14, Hamilton said:

“And on the other side of things, it’s the mental and the physical side of things – just continuing to try to evolve. Working with different people. I don’t want to highlight what areas, but just on the physical and mental side of things."

"There’s so much great research out there of how you can advance your body, how you can be more focussed, and practices that you can take into your daily life. So there’s things like that that that I’ve been working on trying to adopt. And yeah, we’ll see how that works.”

Lewis Hamilton's current contract with Mercedes is set to run out at the end of the 2023 season.

If the rumor mill is to be believed, the Briton could be offered an eye-watering sum of £62 million ($74.6 million) a season, making him the highest-paid driver on the grid.