Lewis Hamilton has claimed that the ‘dream’ of climbing onto the top step of the podium once again is keeping him motivated ahead of the 2024 F1 season. The legendary Mercedes star endured a second successive winless campaign, despite finishing on the rostrum on six different occasions.
The seven-time world champion ended the year as the best of the rest in the Drivers’ Championship standings, sealing his spot in third place behind the Red Bull duo of Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez with a race to spare following a tight battle with historic rival Fernando Alonso throughout the season.
Despite his impressive consistency, 2023 was a year to forget for both Hamilton and Mercedes. The Silver Arrows pipped Ferrari to second place in the Constructors’ Championship but failed to win a Grand Prix for the first time since 2012, ending a near-decade-long streak of race victories.
Asked what was keeping him motivated ahead of the new campaign, Hamilton explained: “It’s the dream of standing on the top step, seeing your team. One of the most amazing things is being able to look back and having the flag of the nation rising behind you, and seeing the team.
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“I remember the first win I had with this team. I have a particular picture of 2015 in Australia with the [team] down there in tears – it was just amazing to be a part of that. The power of that is a huge part of the drive. Winning the world championship is a huge part of the drive.
“Continuing to build with the team on the impact work we’re doing, and continuing to push with the team with Mission 44. I don’t know how far that can go and I’m trying to expand it, and that means I’ve got to raise more money.”
Mercedes are facing a critical winter of development after initially doubling down on the ‘zeropod’ design concept that was first trialled with the German constructors’ 2022 challenger, the W13. Following such a difficult spell, morale has naturally dipped within the organisation.
“I think people who are watching don’t appreciate (that) for everyone, they are away from their homes and their families for so long, missing special dates with kids and all sorts,” Hamilton explained. “You see people’s energy levels go up and down and you try to fill in the voids when there is one, and the same vice versa. That’s what a team does.”
