Lewis Hamilton focused on 2012 but predicts McLaren will be at front in 2013

Lewis Hamilton has insisted it is "business as usual" at McLaren as he strives to switch focus from his plans for 2013 back to his hopes of winning the 2012 World Championship.

The task of turning the Mercedes into a race-winning package is the challenge that Hamilton has now set himself and, somewhat paradoxically, it appears that his expectation that next year's McLaren will be a frontrunner ultimately proved to be a reason to leave rather than stay. "Some of the greats have gone from a great car to not such a great car and have helped to develop a winning team - Michael [Schumacher, who left World Champions Benetton for a then struggling Ferrari team in the 1990s], for instance. To have that as a challenge is amazing," Hamilton had earlier told reporters in the Suzuka paddock. The irony then is that it is Schumacher who Hamilton will replace in 2013 as he seeks to emulate the German's success in propelling Ferrari back to the forefront of F1. "I hope to some day achieve some of the things he has achieved," remarked Hamilton on the day that Schumacher announced his retirement from the sport. Only time will tell how successful that pursuit will be.