'World’s greatest driver' Lewis Hamilton will be fighting Max Verstappen and others for the F1 crown again, states Toto Wolff

Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff showered praise on Lewis Hamilton, claiming that he will easily be able to fight Max Verstappen if the team gives him a championship-winning car.

Toto Wolff acknowledged that Lewis Hamilton had a bad weekend in the 2023 F1 Abu Dhabi GP, where he finished P9. However, Wolff claimed that the British driver is still the greatest in the world.

The Mercedes boss admitted that the W14 was a bad car to handle, and Hamilton would be able to fight for the championship only if the team gave him a capable car. He said (via F1.com):

“From Lewis’ perspective, he had a bad weekend. I think that doesn’t do anything to him being the greatest driver in the world. If we’re able to give him a car, then he would be fighting for a World Championship, I have no doubt. It’s clear that when you have a Formula 1 car like we have now, you’re never at ease with it – you have good weekends and bad weekends.”

Toto Wolff dove deep into the seven-time world champion's mentality and how his real performance is unleashed when he has a target and the means to reach it.

“In the end, every time where we’ve seen that Lewis has someone in his target in front of him and it was about winning the race, then the real Lewis comes alive and I think we just need to give him that [opportunity].”

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Lewis Hamilton visits the factory more often to help develop the Mercedes W15

Hamilton recently claimed that his trips to the Mercedes factory have increased during the 2023–24 winter break. The seven-time world champion has been helping the engineers develop the W15 in the hopes that it can compete with Red Bull and Max Verstappen in 2024.

The Brit said (via motorsport-total.com):

“I’m in the factory much more often now, having meetings with all the department heads to try and motivate and encourage them all. I talk to them, show them where we need to improve and what direction we need to go in."

"I just try to help them be positive and to say we can do it. I also looked closely at other vehicles and asked a lot of questions just to stimulate ideas.”

Lewis Hamilton has not been able to win a world championship since 2020. The thrilling 2021 season ended with Max Verstappen winning his maiden world title in the final lap of the last race.

Since then, the Silver Arrows have been experiencing a slump from which they are unable to come out. The 2024 F1 season will be a crucial year for them since they are hungrier than ever to get back on top.