The new regulations that were introduced at the start of 2022 were brought in with the aim of making Formula 1 more competitive again, giving every team an equal chance of achieving great things.
The budget cap and redesigned cars should see the grid close up significantly but after Red Bull ran away with both championships in 2022, it has been suggested that it may take a couple more years for these changes to pay dividends.
Mercedes struggled under the new regulations, producing an uncompetitive W13 which was massively hindered by a major porpoising problem that it took the team around half of the season to fix.
Lewis Hamilton finished the season without a single win for the first time in his career but is set to sign a new contract with the Silver Arrows in the coming weeks, claiming that his failures have made him hungrier than ever to win a record breaking eighth world title.
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While the 38-year-old hopes that Mercedes can return to winning ways this year, Hamilton has also admitted that he would like to see the likes of his former team McLaren make the step up to become title contenders next season.
“I’d like to think that we’re going to be the ones that are competing with them and being able to beat them [Red Bull] again, I do believe that for sure,” Hamilton told the Formula 1 website.
“But I really hope that Ferrari are strong in the following years. They’ve definitely had a difficult year but there’s been some strong signs, obviously, that you’ve seen this year, which has been nice to see. And it’s been nice to see Ferrari doing well again.
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“So, I hope that it’s more than a two-way battle next year. I hope there’s at least three of us. If not, surprisingly, maybe more. Like, why can’t McLaren be there? We’ll see. Or even Alpine has been doing amazing. So, we’ll see.”
Should Lewis Hamilton win the 2023 drivers’ championship, he will become statistically the most successful Formula 1 driver of all time, with the most titles, wins and pole positions in the sports history, beating even the legendary Michael Schumacher.
A contract extension is yet to be formally signed however both Hamilton and his Mercedes boss Toto Wolff have claimed that the extension is inevitable but is simply lower down the agenda over the winter break than more pressing issues.