[imagesource: Twitter/ @fiagirly]

Motorsport fans are gearing up for a bumper 2022 Formula One World Championship season. March 20 – get that date down in the diary with the action kicking off in Bahrain.

It appears as though Lewis Hamilton will not retire and his showdown with Max Verstappen will likely be the headline act.

Chances are you’ve already chosen a side on that front, but if you’re still on the fence perhaps this will sway you.

The Mercedes-AMG team has added a number of new staff members, including South African-born mechanical engineer Shau Mafuna.

He has joined the Mercedes Benz High-Performance Powertrains team, reports TimesLIVE:

…the Johannesburg-born Wits BSc graduate with a Masters degree in motorsport engineering from Oxford-Brooks University, who just last week received a head-nod from the seven-times world champion as he walked through the office building, is focusing on the nuts and bolts of the job rather than the perceived glamour…

He was bitten by the racing sport bug at a friend’s motocross racing birthday party in Midrand when he was a kid.

Image: Instagram / Shau Mafuna

While his peers were infatuated with football, rugby, and cricket, Mafuna was glued to the small screen watching and learning from legendary race kings Michael Schumacher, Sarel van der Merwe and the late Gugu Zulu.

Gugu Zulu, the renowned rally driver, died while climbing Mount Kilimanjaro in 2016.

Mafuna’s father, Eric, recognised his son’s passion and got him started in go-cart racing from a young age.

I hope Shau is ready to talk about Nelson Mandela with Lewis Hamilton, should they cross paths.

You think of him every day, Lewis?

Madiba, there is not a day that goes by that I don’t miss you. Your legacy still shines so bright. You inspire me everyday and I’m forever honoured to have shared this moment with you. Happy Birthday Madiba🖤 We continue to fight for you ✊🏾#NelsonMandela pic.twitter.com/lDL9GPLvih

— Lewis Hamilton (@LewisHamilton) July 18, 2020

Shau is well aware that there’s no time to rest on his laurels:

“It is a major achievement but I’m wary of the whole ‘Hollywood’ type of attention because that’s not what I’m all about, I want to have more of an impact than that,” he told the Sunday Times in an interview…

“It’s part of the culture at the company because we work in an environment where everything moves at breakneck speed. There’s hardly any room for mistakes because they can be costly.”

You only need to look at the finish to the 2021 season to know that every second counts.

[source:timeslive]