In an effort to salvage his F1 season, Lewis Hamilton is making every effort possible. The Mercedes driver now sleeps on a cutting-edge, high-tech bed that costs more than £2,000.
The smart mattress is able to track and enhance fitness levels and recovery by detecting even the smallest details of your body temperature, breathing, and heart rate.
George Russell, Hamilton’s Mercedes teammate, also sleeps on the £2,100 mattress to maximize performance.
The mattress was developed and produced by Eight Sleep, a Miami-based business that Matteo Franceschetti, a former skier, helped co-found.
Toto Wolff, the head of Mercedes, is one of those who has supported the trial as the Silver Arrows seek to gain a slight advantage over their fellow F1 competitors.
The Austrian is urging his underwhelming team to adopt the product because he thinks the outcomes will be advantageous for everyone involved.
Wolff said: “Our team is made up of over 2,000 people, all of whom perform at their peak every day in a sport where every single detail matters.
“To achieve the level of performance required, we are relentless in exploring all possible optimisations, including sleep.”
One of the bed’s major benefits is that it will support Hamilton and Russell’s backs, which have been rattling while driving their cars this season.
After a sluggish start to the season that caused them to blow the World Championship, Mercedes mechanics have been working around the clock to try and improve changes and adjustments to their “undrivable” porpoising car.
Russell’s performance coach insists that his driver’s form has improved since he began using the pod and stresses the value of sleep.
“Sleep is one of the most important factors for performance, especially for us,” Aleix Casanovas said.
“We travel so much, changing time zones. Since George started using Eight Sleep, his heart rate variability has gone up and his heart rate has gone down, which I’m pleased to see. We can push him more in training when he sleeps well.”
It turns out the use of the pods is not limited to F1 drivers Lewis Hamilton and George Russell.
Trevoh Chalobah, a football player for Chelsea, and Tom Stoltman, the strongest man in the world, have both used Eight Sleep’s product.
