Lewis Hamilton retirement talk ends with Brit back at Mercedes HQ for look at 2022 car

Lewis Hamilton is expected to return to Mercedes HQ today in order to check out his new car for the 2022 season, bringing an end to an rumours regarding his retirement.

Hamilton agonisngly missed out on a record eighth world championship last campaign, as he was pipped to the title by rival Max Verstappen on the very final lap of the season.

The finish was not without its controversy though, as Verstappen was able to take advantage of a contentious safety car call from race director Michael Masi late on.

As a result, Hamilton - who had a comfortable lead at the front - had his advantage wiped out after Masi ordered a number of lapped cars between the Englishman and Verstappen to take over a safety car.

This means the pair left to play out a one-lap shootout in order to decide the title, and it was the Dutchman who prevailed no doubt thanks to a much fresher set of tyres.

Following the chaotic finish Hamilton was left heartbroken, and in the weeks after the season finale remained silent in the public eye and across his usually active social media pages.

This radio silence along with comments from his Mercedes boss Toto Wolff, in which he revealed the seven-time world champion was left 'disillusioned' with the sport following the controversial finish, led many to believe that Hamilton was ready to call time on his racing career.

Nearly two months on though, it seems the Englishman will have put all those rumours to bed with his return to his team's HQ expected today, according to The Sun.

His return to the Mercedes camp comes just two days after he finally broke his social media silence.

The racing great took to his Instagram page to share an image of himself pictured in front of the Grand Canyon in Arizona.

Along with the