At this stage he is working for the Brackley-based team on a consulting basis.
It is thought he will attend races when required to, but there are no
definite plans for when he will next be in the paddock.
Evans, who is a founder and director of Gazing Performance, a company set up
in 1998 which has worked with the Rugby Football Union (RFU) and London
Irish, studied experimental psychology at Oxford University on a prestigious
scholarship for foreign students, where he also played in what was then the
English First Division for Oxford United.
Mercedes have begun the season in almost flawless fashion, with Hamilton’s
retirement at the opening race in Australia the only blemish so far. But
both drivers have expressed concerns that once Red Bull resolve problems
with their Renault engine they will be just as competitive, if not more so,
so the team are eager to extend and maximise their advantage where possible.
Hamilton will be going for his fourth win in a row this weekend in Barcelona
as the European season gets underway. It is a time when struggling teams
traditionally make a big leap forward, making Mercedes well aware of the
threat Red Bull and Ferrari in particular pose to their current supremacy.
The team’s move into sports psychology follows a growing trend in recent years
across major sports teams.
Brendan Rodgers, the Liverpool manager, hired Dr Steve Peters in 2012. Captain
Steven Gerrard has spoken of the benefits of working with the country’s
leading sport’s psychiatrist, and the team have clearly benefited in their
unexpected push for the Premier League title.
Dr Peters has also worked with Ronnie O’Sullivan – the five time world snooker
champion – while England manager Roy Hodgson has said he will bring the
psychologist into his back-room staff for the world cup in Brazil to help
his players keep their nerve, particularly in penalty shootouts.
Evans began working with the All Blacks following their premature exit from
the 2003 World Cup, when they supplemented their reputation for failing to
cope with pressure.
He developed a system of turning the players from having a ‘Red Head’, when
you are unresourceful and panicked, to a ‘Blue Head’, when you are working
at your optimum.
Evans constructed so-called ‘triggers’ to help the players switch from one
mentality to the other. Richie McCaw, the All Black’s legendary captain,
stamped his feet on the ground, while fellow flanker Kieran Reid stares at
the farthest point in the stadium.
His firm Gazing – who he no longer has any direct involvement with – have
worked with individual athletes, teams, coaches as well as sporting bodies
since 2001. Away from sport their clients have included the bank Abbey, car
hire firm Avis, and the United Parcel Service in America.
Evans made more than 100 appearances for Oxford United in the early 1990s, as
well as gaining 56 caps for New Zealand in his career.
He declined to comment when contacted by Telegraph Sport.
With Mercedes all-conquering machinery at this stage, the dynamic between
Hamilton and Rosberg, and their contrasting styles, is proving to be one of
the most intriguing of the season. The Briton has so far outperformed his
German teammate, but remains four points behind in the championship due to
his retirement in Melbourne.
“You can see it everywhere because there are differences in the character and
personality,” Wolff said. “How should the perfect race driver be? You can’t
take the approach of one and combine it with the other, any more than you
can say one is better than the other.
“To put drivers within a certain box is unfair. We take just as much enjoyment
from both and we learn just as much from both.”