Lewis Hamilton drops hint: “I’m working on a plan - I can’t tell you yet…”

The 37-year-old is widely expected to renew his contract with Mercedes, which currently expires at the end of F1 2023.

But he has now dropped an interesting hint on the nature of a new deal.

“In terms of my physical wellbeing, I feel the best I’ve physically ever been because I’ve been really focused on that as you get older,” Hamilton said.

“I’m generally loving driving so I’m working on a plan. I can’t tell you what that is just yet, but there is no limit to what we can do

“I want to be creative and continue to do all the other things I get to do. I get to be myself at this team – and the support from Mercedes has been incredible since day one. 

“Together, it’s not just about winning, we can be part of the many people in the world that are trying to change the world for the better – and that’s what we can try and do together, as it’s a huge brand that can have a huge influence on the world.”

Hamilton sits fifth in the F1 standings and, with two races left in 2022, is facing the first winless season of his esteemed career.

George Russell, his teammate, is fourth.

Hamilton said: “In terms of George joining, he was one of the younger drivers – he would sit behind in debriefs and engineering so he knows the process, and the lay of the land here.

“He comes in and slots in, he knows what to expect. And from my side, I’ve just tried to be as welcoming and include him – trying to communicate a lot about the car, what can I test, what can you test to get us to point A?

“I just try to work with him as I did with Valtteri Bottas. When you add new people, it takes time to all get into the rhythm, but I think he’s done an amazing job, we got into a decent rhythm quite early on, and we’re continuing to work out any kinks there to continue to be on that rhythm.”

Hamilton has vowed to return to the title fight in 2023 and challenge Max Verstappen again.