Lewis Hamilton hints at “a plan” for when he will retire from F1

“There are days I’m like, shoot, I don’t know how much longer I can go”

Lewis Hamilton has discussed how he will “strategise” to meet his goal for longevity before eventually retiring from F1.

Aged 39, Hamilton is the second-oldest driver on the grid behind only Fernando Alonso (43).

But, F1’s most successful driver Hamilton has no desire to slow down yet and will join Ferrari from Mercedes next year.

The precise length of his Ferrari deal is unclear but Hamilton will be racing when F1’s new regulations begin in 2026, and he claimed earlier this year “I’m going to be racing well into my 40s”.

He told Esquire about whether he has a timeframe for the rest of his career: “I definitely do.

“There are days I’m like, shoot, I don’t know how much longer I can go.

“There are days I’m like, shoot, I’d love a break, a proper break, because you don’t get a real big break in the season like other sports.

“You don’t finish until mid to late December, and then you’re back into training already in January, and that’s two times a day you’re training.

“There are another couple of hours of therapy that you’re doing during that time as well.

“So you’re not really getting a huge amount of downtime. And in February, you’re flat out running until December.”

Hamilton teased: “But I do have mentally a plan of where I would like to extend to.

“I’ve just got to strategise and sequence things. I’m very much about sequencing, like looking at brands that I collaborate with, companies that I’m essentially starting, how I manage my time between all those, and how I’m able to dedicate myself to this job still.

“Is there a time when I’m not all in and I’m just not in love with it anymore?

“That’s the moment that hopefully never happens, in the sense that I’ve fallen out of love with it.

“But I will know when I need to stop.”

Hamilton, and Alonso, have shown that it is possible to remain competitive with much younger contenders.

Hamilton has won two of the past three F1 grands prix, at Silverstone and Spa, driving a rejuvenated Mercedes which will give him hope of more wins when the summer break ends.

Then, next year, his quest for an all-time record eighth F1 championship will take him to Ferrari.

“I want to make sure I really max it out while I can and fully enjoy this sport I’ve done my whole life,” he said.

“There are so many people that have finished their careers early, and I’ve spoken to many who’ve said they wish they could have just done one more year or two. And they’re like, ‘Stay in as long as you can!’

“But I don’t want to do it if I’m not good.

“So it’s like, how much do you want to train? When you’re twenty-two, it’s so easy to work out and be fit. There’s no recovery and you’ve got nothing else going on, no other stresses, no real responsibilities except for that one thing to go and kill.

“Now it’s: How can you stay sharp and be able to do all those things you have going on, and still be able to compete with those young guys in their twenties?”

Max Verstappen, Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri (not to mention his teammate George Russell) are among the F1 front runners who are much younger than Hamilton.

He insists that defeating rivals from a later generation is not motivation.

“Not particularly,” Hamilton said. “I’m super competitive naturally. I don’t care who it is. I just want to win.”

F1 resumes in the Netherlands on August 23-25.