Lewis Hamilton says he has thought that it was hard to remain at the same focused force for the last two races of 2017 since securing the title. Hamilton finished the season with nine wins and 11 shaft positions, his title equal Sebastian Vettel of Ferrari on five wins and four posts.
Yet, Bottas commanded the last race at Yas Marina in the wake of taking shaft position and controlling the race from the begin .
The Finn has had a here and there first season with Mercedes, winning three grands prix and beating Hamilton in a few races ahead of schedule in the year when the group were battling for aggressiveness, yet falling behind Hamilton for a significant part of the season half of there season.
Hamilton has not won both of the last two races this year subsequent to securing the title in Mexico, smashing in qualifying in Brazil before recouping to complete fourth, and missing out to Bottas in qualifying and race in Abu Dhabi.
In 2015, he won his third title with three races to go and colleague Nico Rosberg beat him in all the rest of the grands prix.
Hamilton said: “It’s clear that something happens once you’ve won the championship.
“All I can say is that in the week after I won the championship, I partied a lot. That’s what you do. I didn’t do that before the other races.
“The energy has not been the same, even if I have approached the races the same.
“But I’m not worried about that. Next year it will go back to what it was in the second half of the season.”
“I have tried my hardest to stay on it but I wouldn’t say it was 100% of what it was while in the season,” Hamilton said.
“You want to enjoy it. I do still try and turn up and do the job but it’s not so easy.”
Hamilton, beaten by Mercedes partner Valtteri Bottas in the season-shutting Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, has never won a race in a season subsequent to getting to be noticeably champion.
“He is somebody who is very diligent in progressing,” Wolff said. “I don’t think 2015 has happened. He had an accident in qualifying that happened after he has won the championship. And where that comes from I don’t know.
“These guys are pushing the cars to the limit. He didn’t put a foot wrong all season. I’d rather it happened after the championship than before.
“Here he looked very good until qualifying and then Valtteri put it all together and I think you just have to acknowledge this was Valtteri’s weekend.”
