Why there’s even more to come from Hamilton yet

You wouldn't want to be up against Lewis Hamilton. Listen to him talk about the things that excite him and you start to feel for the competition.

Here is one of the greats who has reached that phase of his career where he goes into each season and every race sure in the knowledge of how to win. Confident too, that he drives for a Mercedes team which can keep giving him the tool to do the job.

Having had almost an hour to gently interrogate him - that is just me, him and 400 rapt executives in a Singapore conference hall - the top reaction came from a delegate who isn't even an F1 fan.

"He's a bit special, isn't he? So much calm, focused energy. Inspirational."

It's something I've noticed before with multiple world champions - the ones who have tucked a hat-trick of titles or more under their belt. They have learned 'The Code' - they know what it takes and how to repeat it. They're like the practised computer gamer who already knows what's coming, what it takes to be on the next level.

Ask him anything and the response is somehow instant yet studied. How does he feel at 35?

"I'm the second oldest driver," he says. "I got to Formula 1 at 22, so I was one of them as they are now, these youngsters."

The 'youngsters' are, of course, Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc.

"I feel younger than ever, fitter than ever, more prepared and more determined, which is strange because this is my 14th year in the sport."

"I love being pushed, I love the challenge. That's what excites me mostly. I am probably the most competitive person I know" Lewis Hamilton

Up close you notice how immaculately he is turned out, the attention to detail in every facet of his presentation.

He happily shares his love of fashion, explains how attending fashion shows made him decide to move into this arena, and why this part of his life is so important to him.

"I have spent the last five years trying to figure out what it is that I would love to do when I stop [racing]," he says.

Is this breaking news? Far from it. He talks about being conscious of how many sports stars reach retirement with no plan for the future, and has decided to up-end that.

He loves what he's doing, but he also cannot wait for the next phase when it comes. And 'when it comes' is three to four years away.

Meanwhile the audience has never heard the story of how ten-year-old Lewis approached Ron Dennis at the 1995 Autosport Awards (pictured below).

"I went over to him and said 'Hi, I am Lewis Hamilton, I just won my first championship and one day I want to be world champion in your car'. I don't really know where that came from, because I was generally quite a shy individual," he recalls.

"Three years later he gave me a deal and ten years later I won the world championship in his car."

The auditorium erupts into applause.

The more he explains the challenge involved in winning, the more he smiles
and the more animated he becomes. This is his territory.

"I love being pushed, I love the challenge. That's what excites me mostly. I am probably the most competitive person I know."

What about the competition?

"I want everyone that I am racing against this year to be the best they've ever been because if you do what you plan to do and beat them it's even more satisfying."

He says this with complete sincerity, and you believe him. Amazingly for someone who has achieved so much, there's still plenty more to come.