Lewis Hamilton: My Story

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He had the ability to stay out of trouble. He was always there at the end with his relentlessness and never-say-die attitude," he adds. The one constant in this tumultuous time was the continuing domination of Lewis Hamilton, who won his seventh driving title and led his Mercedes team to a seventh consecutive constructors’ championship.

Those early years, we were just always trying to fit in,” he says. “My dad’s just: Don’t talk about that, just blend in.” All hell broke loose. Dennis threw his headphones down in disgust and went over to remonstrate with Alonso’s trainer, who he wrongly believed was involved. The drivers were called to the stewards, who also received a visit from Anthony Hamilton. Alonso was given a five-place grid penalty. At the time, McLaren had a faster car, and Mercedes had struggled in the three years since they took over the title-winning Brawn team at the end of 2009. Few expected Hamilton to make the jump. But jump he did.Christian Horner told me about a message he received from Hamilton’s circle in January,” Marko told F1 Insider. Signing has shown my commitment to the team," he said. "Let's be realistic. Every single driver that's racing here dreams of being in the winning car.

Rosberg’s lead was out to 33 points and there were four races left. All Hamilton could do now was win them all, and hope that some misfortune befell Rosberg in one of them. You can see they are following in a different manner, in an aggressive manner, in a way that is not comfortable at all for the car in front. TO BE A FORMULA ONE RACING DRIVER you need to be extremely fit and prepared – both physically and mentally for the whole challenge. It is far more exhausting than you can ever imagine if you have never raced in a car. And it is not easy. Sometimes, if you are not feeling right, if you do not have the right energy levels, it can be impossible. It is important to find your own way, then keep your mind clear and maintain the right level of motivation. Mercedes got better and better as the season went on, following Hamilton, who overpowered Ferrari’s dispirited Sebastian Vettel to take the driving title with two races to go, then scored victories in the final two events to vanquish Ferrari and seal the team championship for Mercedes.He replied: "I would be more than happy to race against Max in the same car. It would be wonderful. I don't think he wants me to be his team-mate." Alonso later withdrew the threat, but it was too late. His relationship with McLaren was now irrevocably broken. A contract that had been meant to run for three years would be terminated by mutual consent at the end of the year. Driving an F1 car involves skills that most ordinary people find difficult to comprehend. After braking at the very latest point possible, the driver is balancing on the edge of adhesion at all times during cornering, in an exercise that could perhaps be likened to walking a tightrope at 100mph down a steep hill around a corner in high wind. There was a high level of dedication even at that stage. I remember us all sitting round the kitchen table having a Chinese and poring over the data from testing. " Lewis with Liam, right, and older brother Donall after a race meeting at Nutts Corner

These skills also explain why Hamilton is often so much more effective in races than Bottas, when it comes to key techniques such as following another car closely, overtaking or keeping tyres in optimum condition.It came across as a sanctioned move from Hamilton himself. The message talked about a precondition that Hamilton had set: he was only willing to drive for Red Bull if he was guaranteed the same equipment as Max Verstappen. As far as I could tell, Hamilton’s approach was quite serious…” To explain in detail the subsequent series of events, initially triggered by another car’s accident, would be baffling to anyone not steeped in the world of safety cars, pit stops, differential tire wear, and unlapping procedures. But the crucial part is this: To anyone who understood F1 rules and protocols, Hamilton now seemed destined to win in a rather anticlimactic ceremonial procession. But that didn’t happen. Instead, the race director appeared to improvise a ruling under the intense pressure of the moment, one without precedent, which allowed for one final lap of superficially competitive racing. It was a lap Hamilton would have no realistic prospect of winning because Verstappen, now right behind him with fresh tires, could easily overtake him. That’s exactly what happened. After an inquiry weeks later, the race director transferred from his post—the official report stated that what had happened was human error made in good faith, but the rules were clarified and updated to ensure this wouldn’t happen again. The result stood. While negotiating the busy streets near Nice in his Mercedes Smart car, Hamilton told his interviewer: “Look, we’re on these roads, anything can happen.” Later, as the traffic built up, he went on to say: “This is now stressful for me. This road is crazy. So much going on here. I’m going to turn around in a second.”