Lewis Hamilton's greatness won't be fully realised until after he retires from Formula 1 according to his boss, Mercedes team chief Toto Wolff.
The Briton already ranks amongst the greatest drivers ever after securing a fifth F1 championship – putting him on a level with Juan Manuel Fangio and just two adrift of Michael Schumacher – but his talent isn't fully appreciated according to Wolff and won't be until he stops racing.
"Lewis, in my opinion, along with Michael, are the best we have ever seen," Wolff told The National. "We're only going to realise [that] when he retires one day. We tend to never acknowledge somebody's great performance while it happens.
"We are always full of [praise for] the people who retire or die. But they are never saying 'This guy is really unbelievable, we're alive to witness an exceptional performer'. I think we should recognise that while we are still racing."
Hamilton has won more than half of the last 100 grands prix, ranks second in the all-time winners list with 73 victories (18 behind Schumacher), and tops the all-time pole position list with 83.
Therefore going up against the 34-year-old is a daunting task and current team-mate Valtteri Bottas accepts that, but the Finn is confident he can get the upperhand in 2019 following a disappointing 2018 season which saw him fail to win a single race.
"Lewis is a great driver," added Bottas. "He's one of the best, if not the best, in terms of stats and everything. He's a nice guy at the same time. Very talented, hard working. He's also very experienced, so he's going to be extremely tough to beat.
"[But] In the end he's a human as well and there's no driver that is unbeatable. That's how I must think, if I were to think otherwise I would have to change the team and be with someone else's team.
"I don't want to because it motivates me. I know it's possible but it will require me to be at my best level all the time."
