Lewis Hamilton, 39, shocked the F1 world at the beginning of the year by announcing that he would leave his long-term team, Mercedes, for its most famous rival, Ferrari, at the start of the 2025 season. In this moment of change, the athlete is already reflecting about when he will stop competing. “I’ve spoken to so many incredible athletes, from Boris Becker to Serena Williams; I even spoke to Michael Jordan. I talked to these big names who are retired, or some who still compete, about the fear of what comes next, the lack of preparation for it. Many said they stopped too soon, others said they stayed too long. Or even: ‘When it all ended, I had nothing planned’ and ‘My whole world collapsed because I lived my whole life around this sport’. When I entered Formula 1 it was wake up, train, run, run, run, nothing more. There was no room for anything else. But what I realized is that just working all the time doesn’t bring happiness, and you need to find a balance. In fact, I was very unhappy. There was so much missing, I was much more than that. It was crazy, because I thought: I’m in Formula 1, I’ve achieved my dream and I see myself where I always wanted to be, at the top; I’m fighting for the championship. But I didn’t feel any pleasure in it,” he said to GQ Brasil.
In this context, Hamilton begins to plan life after F1, with passions that he cultivates and invests in throughout his career. When he started traveling to Los Angeles, he ended up exposed to creative people from creative industries. These trips ushered in a new season of self-expression, starting with hair, tattoos and jewelry; then, through music, fashion and cinema. Among his most important side projects is a big-budget Hollywood film that he produces alongside Brad Pitt and the team that made Top Gun: Maverick. “I feel like my job has been to try to point out what doesn’t stick. ‘That would never happen. It would be like this.’ Just giving them advice on what the sport really is and what attracts a fan and what doesn’t,” said the publication. In music, he likes to meet with artists, outside of racing seasons, and compose original projects. Now in fashion, he thinks out loud: “Honestly, one of my dreams is to create my own, diverse, LVMH [holding francesa da Louis Vuitton]. I don’t know if we live in a time where this is really possible. But this is something I’ve been thinking about.”
