3 Birthday Wishes for Lewis Hamilton

The wonder kid who took Formula One by storm back in 2007 is a kid no more.

Today (Jan. 7) marks Lewis Hamilton's 30th birthday, a milestone that was almost unthinkable when the 2006 GP2 champion, then at the age of 22, surged to a podium finish in his first race for McLaren in Australia.

Since then, the road has been one of highs and lows as the British driver has been forced to mature in front of the unforgiving glare of the public, but Hamilton has always tended to have the last laugh, claiming world titles at the final rounds of the 2008 and 2014 campaigns.

As he enters his fourth decade, here are three things that Hamilton might wish for in 2015 as he hopes to successfully defend his crown.

Last year's Mercedes W05 Hybrid was not only the best car that Hamilton has ever driven—it is arguably the best car in the history of Formula One.

Hamilton claimed 11 of the W05's 16 grand prix wins and broke his personal-best record for consecutive victories on two separate occasions en route to his second world title.

And even if the 2014 car's successor, the W06, is just a fraction as strong as the W05, Hamilton will be in a prime position to secure a third crown. 

With the technical regulations remaining relatively stable, however, there is every chance that the W06 will be just as fast as the W05 if not faster.

The discovery of a loophole in the engine rules—as reported by Autosport's Jonathan Noble—which will allow manufacturers to develop their power units during the season, should allow Ferrari and Renault-powered teams to close the gap to some extent.

But with Mercedes also permitted to improve their pace-setting power train—and with Auto Motor und Sport (h/t motorsport.com) reporting that the Silver Arrows have already found an extra 50 horse power—the Brackley-based team are likely to increase their advantage.

It is a scary prospect for Mercedes' rivals, but it should suit Hamilton just fine.

As good as the W05 was, there were times in 2014 when it felt as though the No. 44 car was trying its utmost to deny Hamilton the world championship.

He was forced to retire from the season-opening Australian Grand Prix just 24 hours after setting pole position, with a technical issue leading to his stoppage in Canada while Nico Rosberg, with the same problem, went on to finish second.

Hamilton lost pole at Silverstone after pulling out of his final lap in the belief that the track was too wet and crashed out of qualifying at the following round in Germany having suffered a brake failure.

Just a week later, the Mercedes driver failed to set a lap in qualifying at the Hungaroring when his car burst into flames.

At that point, bad luck was seriously threatening to derail Hamilton's title challenge and made his eventual triumph much more complicated than it otherwise might have been.

He may want to play it safe in 2015 by sitting out the free practice sessions in Australia and Brazil, with FP1 and FP2 scheduled to take place on Friday the 13th.

When he wasn't being knocked out of qualifying with fires and brake failures in 2014, Hamilton was generally being beaten by Rosberg in the one-lap arena.

The German, with 11 pole positions, had the upper hand over his team-mate in qualifying for the second successive season, a concern when the British driver is widely regarded as the fastest driver in F1 in terms of absolute speed.

Qualifying pace was Hamilton's single biggest weakness last season, but the good news is that his failure to get the better of Rosberg wasn't entirely his fault.

The British driver was constantly troubled by brakes in 2014 and was often found making niggling and decisive lock-ups in crucial qualifying runs, costing him pole positions in Bahrain, Canada, Austria, Belgium, Japan, the United States and Abu Dhabi.

Hamilton will surely be hoping that he can refine his braking technique—or that that Mercedes' braking partners, Carbone Industrie, will cater to his needs—to ensure that such opportunities won't slip from his grasp this year.