Lewis Hamilton hopes that the rules in Formula 1 will be changed soon. The seven-time world champion wants to see a level playing field, and is disappointed that he currently has little chance of winning or an eighth world title. The Briton has a hard time watching Red Bull Racing win race after race.
Hamilton moved from McLaren to Mercedes in early 2013, and it turned out to be good timing: 2014 saw the introduction of hybrid engines, marking the start of a long period of dominance for the German carmaker, which saw the team win eight constructors’ titles in a row and Hamilton became champion six times. In his time at Mercedes, Hamilton won 82 races and took 78 pole positions, but it now appears that Hamilton is not a fan of such dominant periods.
The Briton responded in Monza to the question of whether action is being taken to bring the field closer together. ‘I don’t know what has been proposed. I have heard nothing. We were also often the target of rule changes specifically designed to slow us down,” Hamilton is quoted by Formule1.nl. “I really think that was better for the sport. In 2020 or 2021 we were very good in qualifying. They then banned our mode for qualifying and that brought the rest a lot closer.’
Tension behind Verstappen
Hamilton realizes there are two sides to the story. “On the one hand, of course, as a team you deserve to win if you develop a good car, but on the other hand, as racing fans, we all want to see it being exciting on track,” said Hamilton. “Behind Red Bull you now see a very exciting championship. Ferrari, Aston Martin, and all the other teams are very close to each other. So in a way the new rules have worked.’
Only Red Bull, and Verstappen in particular, usually avoids the exciting duels. “There is always more to do, but I think we have made a lot of progress. Above all, I just hope that there are no periods in the future where Mercedes dominate for ten years and then Ferrari dominate for ten years and then another team. I don’t think that’s what we as drivers want for this sport, and certainly not what the fans want to see. We want it to be exciting and I hope it will only get better in that regard.”
