Martin Brundle: A lot depends on Hamilton’s motivation

Former Formula 1 driver and now British Sky Sports F1 pundit Martin Brundle commented on Lewis Hamilton and George Russell’s chances of challenging for the title if Mercedes provide them with a fast car.

Martin Brundle: “I think there is no doubt that Mercedes are no longer the force they used to be. And this is due to the fact that they failed to create the right car in 2022 and correct the mistakes in 2023. In addition, there were many personnel changes, as it was clear that many wanted to get their employees who worked in the team during the era of dominance.

We’ve seen examples in other sports where a team starts out undefeated and then suddenly finds itself in a position where it can’t win. This seems strange, but to end the winning streak it is enough for two or three pieces of the puzzle to fall out or change. Mercedes is a strong team, but they need the stars to align. 2024 will be an important year for them.

Lewis Hamilton and George Russell are very close in terms of speed, but if you look at the statistics, George has had some terrible races this year. Which of them will be able to challenge for the title if the car allows it? Good question. Depends on whether Lewis maintains his current motivation.

Lewis knows how to win titles, but George has youth on his side. I don’t have an answer, but I certainly won’t say, “Lewis will win without a doubt because he’s a seven-time champion.” I certainly won’t say that. We will only know if George is capable of fighting for the title when he has the right car. We don’t know if he can handle it.”

Asked whether Lewis Hamilton would retire at the end of 2024 if problems with the car were to arise again, Brundle said: “I think if Lewis thinks an eighth title is not achievable in a reasonable timeframe he will think about Plan B .”