Hakinen: If the car is not competitive, Hamilton will have a hard time accepting it

Mika Hakinen said he would like to see Lewis Hamilton return to F1, but he believes it will be difficult for the seven-time world champion to come back to an uncompetitive car.

Hakinen added that there were "too many factors" at play as to whether the Mercedes driver would return to the race, with questions being raised about his future following the controversy in Abu Dhabi last December.

Two-time world champion Hakinen said Hamilton's return would depend in part on being able to continue to have a car that would give him his eighth title, otherwise "it's really hard for him to accept".

With the new rules in place, the Finn said it would be a "very interesting year" in terms of the outcome of the season.

Hakinen said: "Lewis's journey in F1 has been really long and there are a lot of factors influencing his views on whether or not to continue. Lewis is confident, he's been winning, he's been standing at the top of the podium and everyone is looking up at him like 'wow, you're amazing' and he thinks it has to go on like this, so this year is going to be a very interesting year for him. The rules of F1 racing have changed dramatically, it will be a brand new car, the designers may not be able to design the best car, if that happens, Lewis will have a hard time accepting. If you've been at the top of the mountain and suddenly you have to experience the feeling of climbing the mountain again because you don't have the best car, it will test his emotional control. There are a lot of questions around Lewis and we don't know if he'll come back, but we hope he will come back. ”

Hamilton's decision was seen as contingent on the FIA's internal findings into the Abu Dhabi incident, when the Briton said last season's closing spell was "manipulated".