Lewis Hamilton's Dilemma: What Does He Do After His Superb 2008 Season?

It’s interesting how downbeat McLaren already are about their prospects for the 2009 Formula One season.

After finishing 16th and 18th in both Friday free practice sessions, it looks as though the prospects of Lewis Hamilton winning the Australian Grand Prix on Sunday are slim. With Heikki Kovalinen managing fifth in the first session, the prospect of the British team getting off to a flying start this season look ominous.

Although anything can happen in Formula One, and it usually does as esteemed commentator Murray Walker once put it, if Hamilton finishes equally bad in qualifying and the race, the question has to asked—where now for the current world champion?

Hamilton’s biggest mistake was announcing after he had won the 2008 world championship, that he would stay with McLaren Racing for the rest of his career.

For some this may appear a reasonable option—McLaren is one of the most successful teams in the history of the sport, and any driver would probably jump at the chance of racing for them.

However, McLaren has a tendency, as have Ferrari, Williams, and other top teams, of having periods of great success but long periods of disappointment.

To think, Hamilton was McLaren’s last world champion after Mika Hakkinen almost a decade ago. Previous to Hakkinen, the last McLaren winner was Aryton Senna in 1991.

Saying that however, between those championship winning years, McLaren has remained a formidable force throughout Formula One seasons. In recent years, Kimi Raikkonen had come close to winning the crown a few times. So, it would be foolish to say that McLaren was not a competitive force during those times.

With the most radical sporting and technical regulation changes in Formula One for around 25 years, has McLaren’s luck run out again? More importantly is Hamilton destined to become a one hit wonder much like Jaques Villeneuve’s championship win in 1997?

Villeneuve never again won an F1 championship. Time will only tell, but it has to be said that Lewis could quite easily seal his F1 fate to the “kid that might have been.”

As F1 enters the first stage of its racing revolution, McLaren still has a lot to prove and by all means should never be ruled out. Ron Dennis, Mclaren CEO, and Martin Whitmarse, Team Principal, are already proclaiming the team will be back in form by Spain.

Hamilton fans across the world will be eagerly watching Sunday’s race from Albert Park hoping the “dream” that Lewis aspired to as a young boy hasn’t already fallen flat.