A LIGHT-HEARTED Lewis Hamilton laughed at the past and looked forward to a happier season ahead after helping Jenson Button take the wraps off McLaren's sleek new Formula One car.
Highlighting the re-profiled wing mirrors on the silver and red MP4-27, former world champion Hamilton joked that the rear-view improvements would also be appreciated by Ferrari rival Felipe Massa.
The two drivers clashed repeatedly last year in a controversial and crash-happy season that Hamilton was only too happy to leave behind.
"We've changed the wing mirrors, so hopefully we'll be able to see a little bit better," said Hamilton, "Felipe will be happy with that."
"I think it (the car) looks fantas-tic. I think it's probably the most refined looking car we've had for some time now. When the car looks good, it generally is good."
Hamilton and 2009 world champion Button, overall runner-up in 2011, won three races each last year but Red Bull and Sebas-tian Vettel won both championships for the second year in a row.
Button said he had no idea where McLaren stood this year but hoped he would have a good impression when the car hits the track in Jerez, southern Spain, next week.
"We're all positive now and hopefully that will continue in testing," he said.
"We've got to come out of the box and be strong. We are excited but I'm sure every team is a little bit apprehensive when it comes to testing."
The new F1 season, which starts in Australia on March 18, will have a new race in Austin, Texas, and an unprecedented six cham-pions on the starting grid now that Kimi Raikkonen has returned.
"It's great to have so many great champions out there, that's definitely enough world cham-pions, hopefully there won't be any more out there," smiled Hamilton.