Behind-the-scenes at the multi-million pound Mercedes F1 factory and simulator where Lewis Hamilton prepares before a race
We were given access to Mercedes' top secret F1 factory in Brackley where the record breaking cars are put through their paces by triple world champion Lewis Hamilton and the team
LEWIS Hamilton might be the man with the world titles, pole position records and million-pound contracts - but he's not a one man team.
Behind every great race driver is a huge support team of designers, engineers, computer wizards and mechanics making sure the car is at its peak on track.
And the workers are the unsung heroes, ploughing in huge hours to keep Mercedes at the top but staying out of the spotlight.
Their work has helped the team dominate F1 in recent years with Hamilton - and last year Nico Rosberg - cruising to victory.
And the German outfit is fighting hard to make it four on the spin in 2017.
Ahead of the season run-in, The Sun Online was given the chance to go behind-the-scenes at Mercedes' F1 base in Brackley, Northants to lift the lid on their success.
The factory is normally off limits with so many secrets held but we were given exclusive access to race bays, the machine workshop, race control - and even the state-of-the-art simulator that Hamilton uses to hone his skills.
Photos are sparse of the F1 nerve centre - we were even made to tape our smartphone cameras up - but we're also able to reveal a glimpse into life at the world title-winning HQ.
From the outside, the 60,000m² Mercedes campus is pretty unassuming. It's sat off a roundabout by the M40 in the small town of Brackley - just a few miles from Silverstone.
But inside it's a mixture of fast-paced workshops, luxury furnishings and hi-tech computer wizardy.
In five shifts, more than 700 employees work 24 hours a day, seven days a week on design, development and manufacturing.
Only during the two-week summer break and on Christmas Day do the workshops down tools.
The machine workshop churns out hundreds of complex parts a day to keep up with car development - and ensure the cupboards are well-stocked in case Hamilton or his new team-mate Valtteri Bottas end up crashing.
Fortunately, that doesn't happen very regularly but on one occasion last season when Hamilton came to blows with Rosberg and wrecked both cars in Spain, the workshop went into overdrive to produce replacements in time for the next race. That included carbon-fibre parts which need to be cooked in the huge ovens and layered together.
Mercedes went on to win the next race.
Once the parts have been tested and signed off, they're fitted to the cars in the race bays.
During our visit, two of these are empty as the team is at race in Belgium but one car remains and is being stripped down.
It's an incredible sight to see the car jacked up and in pieces when you're so used to seeing the pristine, shining cars on the grid each weekend.
Looking over the cars up close and personal it also becomes clear how minor bodywork is built into the chassis to aid airflow.
Creating as much grip and downforce as possible is the secret to success and the front wing alone features thousands of design tricks to make sure the air is as smooth as possible.
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All that work is done in the wind tunnel - which is one of the biggest on the F1 grid.
To save costs teams use scale models of cars rather than full-size replicas and Mercedes is able to use 60 per cent models - a huge advantage as they can drill down further into aerodynamics than some rivals.
With the car fitted out and designed to perfection it's down to the drivers to put that to good use on track.
And this season there are 20 races in total meaning Hamilton and Bottas need great knowledge of each circuit before they arrive: that's where the multi-million pound simulator comes into play.
Hamilton famously criticised the Mercedes simulator in 2014 for being a glorified computer game - but since then vast improvements have been made.
There's a 270-degree HD screen, full motion simulator, an aptly-named "butt kicker" speaker under the seat and a steering wheel that's an exact replica of the £50,000 piece of kit used on race day.
The real car's exact stats are loaded into the sim and weather, track grip and tyre wear can be all be tweaked to help drivers train for every eventuality.
And we were given access to the simulator to see if we could cut it as a modern day F1 driver.
Getting in is hard enough with the tiny cockpit not designed for normal sized humans - you need to be jockey-sized to be "comfortable".
The pedals are also above the seat meaning you sit in a odd semi-reclined position.
There's no chance of falling asleep, though. As soon as the simulator kicks in your eyes are on stalks and feet dancing across pedals to keep the car under control.
The steering wheel requires a light but firm touch and the machine-gun gear changes shake you with every shift.
And just as you have the car on a leash and you push that bit too hard, it snaps and you're careering off towards the grandstands.
Fortunately, Mercedes had turned off the full crash simulation to avoid injuring us - Hamilton seriously bruised his thumb during one shunt in the sim just days before a race.
And F1 legend Michael Schumacher, who raced for Mercedes at the end of his glittering career, spent just a handful of hours in the simulator as it made him feel sick.
No matter what Hamilton might've claimed in the heat of the moment then - a video game it was not.
The final stop on our tour of Mercedes HQ is race control.
It's here where the action really hots up on race day. Thousands of calculations are made to determine how the weather might effect strategy, what rivals might do with tyres and where the telemetry is showing drivers could eek out more performance.
Just 100 or so team members actually travel to races with many more back at Brackley feeding information to the team trackside.
If there's any questions about whether all this money and investment actually works, you only need to take a look into the Silver Arrows lounge with its luxury soft furnishings and trophy cabinet.
The huge glass wall shows just how successful the team has been in the last five years.
So next time we see Hamilton throwing a trophy up in the air on the podium, we'll be thinking of the remarkable people who put their heart and souls into the victory away from the glitz and glamour.
