Lewis Hamilton.PHOTO/FILE
ENGLAND, February 22 – Although Lewis Hamilton is not too fussed by Nico Rosberg’s form at the end of 2015, he concedes it was a sign that he needs to “raise the bar”.
Having wrapped up the 2015 championship with his 10th race win of the season in Austin, Hamilton failed to win any of the last three races.
Instead it was Rosberg who came to the fore with some predicting that his form could unsettle Hamilton ahead of the new season.
The Brit, however, insists that is not so although it has made him realise that he needs to up his game.
“I’m not really too fussed about what happened in the final few races of 2015 as it didn’t affect my championship,” he said.
“Of course, I love winning and that’s always the goal – but to be honest my attention was elsewhere at that point.
“It had been such a successful season and you can’t win them all, so that was my feeling at the end of the year.
“If anything, it motivated me. It made me think ‘OK, next year Nico is going to be super-quick and super-strong, so I’ve got to make sure I raise the bar again’.
“That’s the big question – how do you do that?
“I’ve achieved it in each of the last two years – but to do it again for a third time will be tough, no doubt.
“That’s the unknown – but I’ve been in the simulator recently and thankfully I can still drive, so that’s a start!”
The three-time World Champion debuted Mercedes’ new W07 at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya on Monday morning and revealed before the first run that he was “really” excited.
He said: “I’ve been racing a long time – but when you get to drive a new car for the first time it’s still really exciting. It’s like when you buy a new road car and drive it home for the first time.”
