2022 was an incredibly difficult season for Mercedes, the team who had become so used to dominating the championship.
Since the start of the hybrid era in 2014, the Germans have claimed a monstrous eight Constructors’ Championships, highlighting their status as one of the greatest F1 teams of all-time.
With that in mind, finishing third in 2022 must have been an immense shock to all who work for the Silver Arrows, given how common success has been for them.
However, despite their struggles in the most recent season, it has seen the team pull together like never before, with motivation and determination having been vital to overcoming their flaws with the W13.
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Lewis Hamilton has endured his own issues in 2022, with the season having been the worst of the seven-time World Champion’s F1 career, yet he remained upbeat, and positive throughout the season.
In his 10 years racing for Mercedes, 2022 was by far the most challenging for him; however, Mercedes boss Toto Wolff has actually revealed that he saw a new side to the Brit this season, one of a manager.
“I would say so, yes,” said Wolff, when asked if he sees Hamilton as part of the management team on the ‘Beyond the Grid’ podcast.
“Obviously, there is his involvement in developing the car and his presence in the factory.
“But I think that on the race weekends he has become such a senior figure, maybe a little bit like Michael [Schumacher] was back in the day or Tom Brady, that you become more than just a player or just the driver.
“You are emotionally part of the team and he definitely is.
“He’s not, like we called them in the past, a contractor. Drivers come, get paid and leave for the next better occasion.
“But he has been with the team now for 10 years. He is a team member.”
It was remarkable to see the Stevenage-born driver remain so motivated despite the season quite literally being a nightmare for him.
2022 was the first season ever where he failed to claim a single pole or victory, something he has stated doesn’t bother him.
Discussing Hamilton’s season, Wolff admitted that it was “extremely tough”, but that he’s remained “really admirable” all campaign.
“[It was] extremely tough because we gave him a tool that wasn’t capable of winning,” added the Austrian.
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“And on top of that, the drivers had a car that was unpredictable, unstable, good at times and not good at others. It was not really something that you could work with and develop.
“But as a personality, how he has gone through the season is really admirable. There were times when the team felt down because of the non-performance and Lewis picked the people up and motivated them.
“That is truly management and personality traits that I have not seen with a professional sportsman before.”