The 2021 Formula 1 season ended with a finale befitting of the controversy and chaos that ran right through it. After Lewis Hamilton overtook his rival, Max Verstappen, off the track early on, he charged off into the distance, controlling the race comfortably.
But a late safety car bunched up the pack and with the laps counting down, a controversial decision was made by the race director, Michael Massey, that saw the two racers battle it out for a final-lap shootout.
With Verstappen on fresher tires, he managed to breeze past Hamilton and cross the line first, winning his first Formula 1 World Drivers’ Championship and ending the unprecedented run of dominance that his rival has enjoyed.
But with 2021 behind us and the 2022 season well underway, things are looking very different, so much so that it appears that Hamilton may have run out of opportunities to win more titles.
2022 - A New Era for F1
Formula 1 is a sport that combines technical ingenuity and driver skill. This means that to win you need to both build a better car and hire talented drivers to squeeze every last thousandth of a second out of it.
Every five years or so, the sport shakes up its rules to try to close up the gaps that emerge between the teams, preventing it from becoming stale with the same faces at the front every week.
Doing so is good for everyone in the sport. For fans, they get to watch a more exciting show with increased unpredictability and jeopardy that can keep them engaged for longer. Increased engagement boosts TV ratings, allowing broadcasters to charge more for advertisements and make more from subscriptions. In turn, the sport can charge more for TV rights deals and teams can also command higher prices from their sponsors.
More fans engage in sports betting when there is increased competition as they like the challenge of trying to predict the outcomes of races. This then results in larger numbers of people turning to sites like OddsChecker that list and compare the F1 odds offered by most major sportsbooks.
One of these changes took place in 2022, with a shift in aerodynamic philosophy changing the look of the cars completely and radically altering the way that they handle the track.
As intended, the biggest consequence of this change is that it has improved the racing with new teams and drivers in the mix for wins and podiums. In fact, it already looks like F1 will be getting another close title battle, though this time involving Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc and Red Bull’s Max Verstappen.
Change at Hamilton’s Expense
However, all this change has come at the expense of Mercedes and Lewis Hamilton. The pair have been at the front of F1 for eight years but have been sent down the running order due to their 2022 car struggling with bouncing issues.
Although the poor luck of Red Bull in the opening race promoted Hamilton to the podium, he finished two of the first four races in the bottom half of the field.
Despite some early optimism, the problems with the silver arrows this season appears to be chronic and not something that they can overcome quickly. This means, therefore, that the chances of Hamilton fighting for this year’s title are fast becoming slim to none.
The End of the Road?
Hamilton has a contract with Mercedes until the end of the 2023 season, but it was clear that he had already considered retiring after the end of 2021.
While the seven-time champion would love to prove his haters wrong by winning the eighth title, that’s not going to happen this year. And unless some major improvements can be made this season, there will be serious doubts cast over his chances next year. This will also give Hamilton reason to consider hanging up his helmet before his current deal expires.
Moving to another team isn’t really an option either. Red Bull has a long-term contract with Verstappen, and Ferrari has recently re-signed Sainz and has publicly committed to Leclerc. There are no other teams in serious contention for regular wins and Hamilton wouldn’t want to drive in the midfield.
Therefore, Hamilton may have run out of road as he approaches his 15th year in the sport.
