Hamilton looking to seal title number six without long-term race engineer

As he bids for a historic sixth world championship crown in Mexico, Lewis Hamilton will have to do so without the familiar calming voice of long-term Race Engineer Pete Bonnington in his ear.

‘Bono’, as he’s often referred to by Hamilton over team radio, has engineered Hamilton to all four of his F1 titles to date with Mercedes, outlining race strategy and providing information and motivation to the Briton.

READ MORE: Pole-less run not likely to change in Mexico, says title-chasing Hamilton

Bonnington, however, hasn’t travelled to Mexico, and won’t be in the United States either as he undergoes a medical procedure.

In his absence, Bonnington’s role will be taken over by Hamilton’s Performance Engineer Marcus Dudley, with Dom Riefstahl, who usually heads up Mercedes’ race support team at the factory, stepping into Dudley’s shoes.

Hamilton needs to outscore team mate Valtteri Bottas by 14 points in Mexico to wrap up the title for the third consecutive season at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez.