However, the Suzuka circuit has a special place in F1, and consequently many drivers take the time to enjoy the attractions Japan has to offer away from track.

This novelty is not lost on Hamilton, who is a massive fan of Japanese gaming company Nintendo.

The company, worth an estimated £44billion, has its own Universal Studios Super Nintendo World in Osaka.

While there the seven-time F1 champ was pictured wearing a white and red polka-dot hat in a clear reference to Super Mario character Toad – who starred in the recent film adaption starring Chris Pratt.

If the hat was not enough to give the F1 superstar away, then wearing a T-shirt of his own “44” branding may not have helped.

His visit came one year after Hamilton paid a visit to a Nintendo shop in Montreal, Canada, in order to buy a Mario Kart game.

But he failed to get the game, instead opting for a Sega Genesis – also known as a Mega Drive.

Following his visit to Japan’s Universal Studios, Hamilton was then spotted taking his Mario Kart passion into real life with fellow driver Esteban Ocon.

The duo were spotted in the Suzuka paddock playing around with a remote control car.

Asked about the activity, he told reporters: “Yeah, so Esteban and I had planned a while ago, that while we’re here, we’ll get our remote control cars together and have a bit of a race in the pit lane.

“For me, it was very reminiscent of when I was a kid on Blue Peter, and it was really cool, because we all share, more in common than we probably think, other than the fact that we’re pure racers.”

He added: “But it’s very rare that we all get to do things like that, so it was it was fun.

“But that’s what our race was when I was a kid. I raced electric and petrol and it was Kyosho.

“It’s basically an evolution of the car that you’ll see, like Senna had and I had the same car as Senna when I was younger. And he’s mega at it.”

He remains in the search for an elusive win since the new era of ground-effect F1 cars came in, but last weekend’s strong display should provide a positive bounce to the season run-in.

Hamilton was also seen supporting Sebastian Vettel as he built 11 “insect hotels” at the Suzuka circuit and painted Turn Two with black and yellow paint.

5Hamilton said it reminded him of when it was a kidCredit: Getty

Complete F1 2023 race calendar – details on every Grand Prix this year