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Lewis Hamilton wants to be surprised by 2017 Formula 1 cars

Lewis Hamilton hopes to be "surprised" and "amazed" by next year's Formula 1 cars, having been one of the biggest critics of the current era

The 2017 cars will be faster, featuring different aerodynamic packages and wider front and rear tyres as part of an overhaul of the technical regulations.

Carlos Sainz Jr says the new-look cars will make F1 look like "another level" having seen the Toro Rosso in the windtunnel.

Having now done the same with Mercedes, Hamilton hopes his doubts over whether the changes will be good for F1 are wide of the mark.

"My feeling from seeing the car in the windtunnel is that it is going to be more physical," he said.

"It's basically taking this car and making it three seconds faster.

"What I am hoping for is to be surprised and amazed at the difference that it makes for racing."

It follows comments made earlier this year, in which Hamilton bemoaned the fact he was often in conservation mode and limited to when he could overtake or really push.

Speaking about getting stuck behind Max Verstappen in Australia, Hamilton said: "It's not that I can't overtake a Toro Rosso, it's because it's like you have $100 and you have to spend it over 40 laps.

"If I spend $90 of it trying to overtake that car then I'm not going to get to the end of the race.

"People don't care - people want to see me race to the end. They want to see me sweat my nuts off and make a fantastic manoeuvre.

"But unfortunately with the way Formula 1 is set up, I would have spent all of my energy trying to overtake one car, and for one pass that would not be exciting enough."

He has also been critical of F1's high-tech power units, suggesting the current formula is too complicated.

His former McLaren team-mate Fernando Alonso has been critical of the current formula, saying the cars are not fun for him to drive anymore.

Hamilton echoed those comments at the time saying: "It was a more extreme race back in the day, it was a sprint," he said. "Formula 1's not about that anymore.

"It's about preserving your tyres, preserving the battery power, preserving the turbo, preserving all these elements which are not what people tune in to see."

Jenson Button, who will be McLaren's reserve next year, thinks the new rules are a step in the right direction.

"There's always give and take but I think it's a much better balance having the high-downforce cars and the tyres they'll have next year," he said.

"It's great that it's going to be more physical next year.

"The sport isn't physical right now. It's easy. I don't think I need to train physically."

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