Has anyone else retired as F1 Champion I wonder?

Laters Britney.

Passion he has been involved in motorsport along time...he has achieved the pinnacle, nothing else to achieve in F1.

Personally I think Lewis loves the celebrity lifestyle that goes with F1 rather than F1 itself.

Jackie Stewart, Alain Prost.

Nigel Mansell sort of retired by moving to Indycar the year after winning the title, I think his aborted comeback in 1994 should be forgotten.

Alain Prost

Many thanks for these replies.

I know where you can get those.

Mike Hawthorn was killed in a road accident a few months after becoming World Champion in 1958, having retired from racing at the end of that season.

I am surprised. Especially since holding out for a 2 year contract, when Merc was only offering a 1 year deal. However good on him, hes going out at the top. Hes been racing for around 2 decades, not something you do if you are not passionate about the sport.

I guess in a way he has saved Lewis from finding another driver...after his antics this year, it would not have been a surprise if he was let go. However for Merc to find two drivers is a big ask. So no doubt will keep him on now.

Merc should mess with Hamilton by signing Alonso. Alonso is a better driver than Lewis, so after getting used to the car, will no doubt be able to beat him on a consistent basis. Come on Merc sign Alonso!!

You are deluded. The only thing Lewis loves is himself. He doesnt care about the sport.

The ideal team pairing is an experienced successful driver paired with a young and talented hotshoe driver.

Not really. It only really works for teams like RB as they have a young driver program. For a team like Merc where it buys in talent rather than develop it, two top drivers is the way to go. It improves the chances of a constructors title, as both drivers will consistently finish in the points.

For McLaren who also have a young drivers program, its not been worth it of late. They are struggling at the bottom so need two experienced drivers to use all their experience to scrape a couple of points every race.

The ideal pairing, depends on the team and where they are on the grid.

Big news about Nico Rosberg quiting. I guess he thinks the sport is too dangerous and doesn't want to end up with a serious accident. Danger aside, I think he should have have tried to defend his title just to see if he is better than Hamilton. It's a disappointing decision for F1 fans wanting to see a Rosberg/Hamilton battle but he values his life and family more than the sport (which is fair enough!).

Vandoorne proved his worth replacing Alonso, scored a point in a mediocre car, now replaces Button for 2017.

Lewis might love himself, but he still fighting like mad to win and he is the best in F1
right now.

I find it so strange that he should retire when it is usually the time when the winner makes the most dosh!

Retiring already? That didn't take long. I guess this constant on and off track bickering with Hamilton was too much to take for another season. At least he went out on a high.

Put him in the same car with the same engine as Hamilton has and then we'll see.

Totally agree.

Can you imagine! Alonso breaks his contract at Mclaren who are left without any experience and suddenly have to real JB back in from the massive party he is now on the try and steady the ship as part of his contract! Mclaren not happy, JB not Happy, Lewis not happy, Alonso laughing away to himself. That said, if Alonso did jump ship it would all but guarantee Merc would fall from grace and Mclaren would have a resurgence judging by his luck and previous decisions!

For Lewis at the moment I think it's one and the same thing. He is obviously passionate about the sport. He wants to make statements, break records and win things.
His out of F1 stuff is celeb filled but that's exactly what F1 was always about, it was being a rock star level of lifestyle which Hamilton still wants and thinks its should be. Most other drivers just turn up, race, go home & hide from publicity which is not good for the sport really.

maybe Nico knew something about the performance of next years cars

Would this be the same Alonso that had a hissyfit after joining McLaren as World Champion but getting beat by his rookie teammate in the same car? Who was his teammate again? LOL

Not after their first title though