Damon Hill has warned Mercedes they must treat Lewis Hamilton with care this season to avoid potentially losing him to another team. Hill, who won the Formula One world title with Williams in 1996, believes Hamilton’s position within the team is strong after the departure of Nico Rosberg at the end of last year and has cautioned that attempting to impose too much control over the three-times world champion could alienate the driver.

Hamilton was outspoken on occasion last year after mechanical failures were a contributory factor in his failure to claim a fourth championship and he was also unhappy with the team’s decision to swap mechanics between the team-mates at the start of the season. He also clashed with them at the final round in Abu Dhabi after refusing to obey team orders by attempting to back Rosberg into the chasing pack.

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This year, now partnered with Valtteri Bottas – the Finn who has yet to win an F1 race – Hamilton is the de facto No1 driver and Mercedes’ best shot at another title. Hill, an analyst for Sky Sports F1, believes he must, therefore, be given leeway within the team.

“Lewis is an emotional beast and there might be a situation where he just goes: ‘I’ve had enough and I don’t want to do it,’” said Hill. “That’s true for every driver but some don’t have the luxury he has, as he might be in demand somewhere else.”

The Mercedes executive director, Toto Wolff, noted last month that the team’s rules of engagement for its drivers had “blank spots” in relation to Abu Dhabi and that they were being adjusted for 2017, part of which Hill expects will be an attempt to try to ensure Hamilton is more settled this season. ‚“He is in a strong position,” Hill said. “Mercedes have to recognise they either want Lewis Hamilton, the asset that he is to them and allowing him the space to do his work, or they don’t.

“If it’s not going well for Lewis, then he does have a tendency to make his feelings known.”

Hamilton has made passing references to leaving F1 in the past, not least at the launch of the new Mercedes this year, when he said: “I don’t know all the reasons Nico retired but I can empathise with the feeling of wanting to stop and do something different.”

Hill also believes Hamilton’s actions in Abu Dhabi were correct, with the team having already wrapped up the constructors’ championship and that drivers had to put their own interests first at times. “I was pleased he did that,” Hill said. “There are a couple of times where he has said, ‘I want to do what I want to do,’ and I am in favour of drivers at certain times choosing their career over the team, because they do have a career and there are two championships and it is a valid point for a driver to say, ‘No, that’s not in my interest. You’ve had your bit and now I am fighting for my bit.’”

The British driver has also attracted criticism for his lifestyle away from the track and his enthusiastic engagement with social media, both having been used as examples of a distraction from his career. But Hill was emphatic it was important that Hamilton should be given the freedom to manage his own time. “He does whatever is necessary to keep his life balance,” said Hill. “Nico stopped because of the pressure of competing and, if Lewis goes away and lets off steam and does whatever he has to do to keep himself fresh and then comes back, that’s a good thing too.”

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Hamilton is now entering his 11th season in F1 and Hill was confident that, should the team allow him the leeway he requires, he is experienced and mature enough to manage the relationship between his personal life and career.

“As a talented driver you must create the conditions where you can do your job without it consuming you,” he added. “Nico had his guts turned inside out in that championship last year and you can only do that so many seasons on the trot. Lewis knows how to manage his resources. You can play too much or work too hard and you do have to keep your energy in reserve. He knows when he goes to Melbourne he will be on top of the job and that he won’t have worn himself out.”

Hamilton left his first team, McLaren, who had nurtured him as a driver since he was 13, to join Mercedes in 2013 and Hill’s fellow Sky presenter Johnny Herbert noted it was something the team must consider. “If they overplay what Toto was saying about managing the drivers after what happened in Abu Dhabi, there is the chance he might go again,” he said. “Like we saw at McLaren with Ron Dennis and his controlling way and Lewis saying: ‘I don’t want this. I’m out.’ That’s the fine line.”

Paddy power

Paddy Lowe has been appointed the chief technical officer at Williams, where he will also take a shareholding in the company. The 54-year-old, who began his career in Formula One at Williams, returns to take charge of the team’s engineering operation. He will join the board of directors and become a shareholder for the Williams Group.