Lewis Hamilton will snub F1 retirement and come back ‘even stronger’ – Mercedes’ Stoffel Vandoorne

LEWIS HAMILTON will be back better than ever in 2022 according to Mercedes’ Stoffel Vandoorne.

Mercedes‘ reserve driver Stoffel Vandoorne is confident Lewis Hamilton will “come back even stronger” in 2022 despite some fears he could retire from Formula One altogether before the new season.

Silver Arrows team principal Toto Wolff sparked some panic when he said last month: “I would very much hope Lewis continues racing because he is the greatest driver of all time.”

Hamilton, 36, is still digesting the disappointment of missing out on his eighth F1 Driver’s Championship in such contentious circumstances at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix in mid-December.

Red Bull rival Max Verstappen was instead the victor courtesy of a last-lap overtake after a safety car, which came after Hamilton had built a healthy lead out front despite driving on heavily worn tyres.

Hamilton has not posted on social media since the race, even despite being knighted by the Prince of Wales at Windsor Castle.

That, among the comments made by Wolff and others outside of Mercedes, has sparked speculation the seven-time world champion could call it quits.

Yet Mercedes’ Formula E racer and reserve driver Vandoorne, who has not competed in F1 since picking up 12 points for McLaren in 2018, expects Hamilton to return to the grid in 2022.

And the Belgian is also expecting the Briton, who snubbed the FIA’s end-of-season prize-giving gala in Paris, to have the fire in his belly after such a frustrating finish to the previous season.

Speaking to RTBF, Vandoorne said: “Lewis didn’t post anything on social media after the race and I think he must have felt very bad that he lost this way on the last lap, when he had everything under control and didn’t put a foot wrong during the race.