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Hamilton: “the pressure was great”
Lewis Hamilton sits in front of a brightly lit trophy wall. Very noble. It could be at the Mercedes factory in Brackley, but we’re not sure. He’s thankful that given the pandemic, the season could take place. That was not a routine matter.
He is asked what his best race was in 2020. Hamilton hesitates: “I don’t remember all the races.” Then he remembers Istanbul: “In the circumstances we were exposed to as drivers and at a time when I was able to become a world champion, the pressure was very high.”
Hamilton is asked if Istanbul is one of the trophies behind him. “I have no idea,” he agitates, “I haven’t looked.” Just to turn around and take a look …
Bottas: what you have planned for 2021
“I have not achieved the results I wanted,” Valtteri Bottas said at the press conference. He was runner-up just before Verstappen. But he also achieved many positive things, emphasizes the Finn. He wants to recover and try again next year.
After all, he got five poles in 2020. “He was often very close. Lewis was often better in the race. However, I would say that I improved my race pace. But it’s true, there is still work to be done,” he says the Finn, who will soon return to Lapland. The rally will compete.
Verstappen: Maybe Pérez will learn Dutch!
Sergio Pérez has had “a great season,” said Max Verstappen at a press conference when asked by his future teammate. “He brings more experience to the team and he’s a good guy. I’m sure we’ll get along well and Mercedes will make life a bit more difficult for him.”
But that’s why he won’t learn Spanish: “Maybe he’ll learn Dutch!”
Verstappen: That was your best race in 2020
We made it to the Formula 1 World Championship with Max Verstappen, Valtteri Bottas and Lewis Hamilton, which is currently underway. Verstappen says the last race is always best remembered. That’s good for him, he says after the victory in Abu Dhabi. He is sitting in front of a shelf with three helmets and a couple of trophies. With a black shirt, a three-day beard and a mustache. Not as formal as host Tom Clarkson, but appropriate for the occasion.
Clarkson wants to know what his best race of the season was. “We did the last race perfectly, even if it was boring. And Silverstone. Or Hungary, with the drama before the start after my accident, with the stress of the mechanics, and still seconds. A great result,” he says. .
Alex Albon’s best moments
In this video, Formula 1 recalls the best maneuvers Alexander Albon showed us this year. The Thai has proven that he really deserves the nickname “Mister Outside” 😉
Meanwhile, there have been some reactions to Red Bull’s decision on social media. Most of the teammates are happy with Sergio Pérez. George Russell has some nice words for Albon too. He writes: “You will be back, friend!”
How Albon understood the end of Red Bull
Christian Horner also explained how Alexander Albon dealt with the negative news for him. He was “of course disappointed,” said the team chief, but also “incredibly mature.”
Albon is “grateful for the opportunity and the support” he received, Horner continues. “And of course he’s determined to do everything he can to get a regular spot again in 2022.”
So far the “photo theory” …
Of course, Red Bull team boss Christian Horner was faced with the question we just discussed through the photo comparison. Namely: when did Sergio Pérez and Alexander Albon find out?
Answer: “Both were informed today.” That would contradict the thesis that there was already an agreement with Pérez in Abu Dhabi, as the photo suggests.
In any case, Perez is said to have been “delighted” with the acceptance, says Horner. “He had already thought that his career in Formula 1 could be over.”
When the deal with Pérez was sealed
The agreement was probably not reached today, but when? If you’ve wondered that, this comparison may help you:
In the attached tweet here are two photos showing Sergio Pérez in the same outfit. And at least from the image of Vettel we know: that was done in the Formula 1 final in Abu Dhabi. And Perez’s clothing suggests that the Red Bull image was taken the same day. At the latest in Abu Dhabi, Pérez found out. That was a few days ago …
The FIA press conference begins
And so we now come to the press conference of the World Automobile Federation (FIA), which is just beginning. As a reminder: today the association honors the winners of its championships, including, of course, the Formula 1 world champions in the drivers ‘and constructors’ championships. And traditionally, the honorees have a voice in the FIA-PK.
Ineos: No full acquisition planned
Of course, we also wanted to hear from Jim Ratcliffe if he could have the long-term vision of taking a majority stake in the Mercedes team and changing the name to Ineos. But that “is not at all” a problem, he says aside: “I am delighted with the constellation with a third of each. It is a very harmonious relationship.”
“Toto is the captain”
Christian Nimmervoll (you can follow him on Facebook here!) Was allowed to ask the last question at the online media meeting on the occasion of Ineos joining Mercedes. It was addressed to Jim Ratcliffe: “In the highly unlikely event that Toto ruins the contract negotiations with Lewis Hamilton, how much of a disappointment would Ineos be and how much attraction would be lost as a result?” After all, a name like Lewis Hamilton is a dazzling figure whose brilliance, of course, would also shine in Ineos.
If the frivolous phrase “if Toto is wrong” appears on Ratcliffe’s face, the first thing is a smile. “I really admire Lewis,” he says, but makes it clear that he will not interfere in the driver’s decisions, even as a new outside shareholder: “Toto is ultimately the captain of the ship. We trust him. No question. Because He is the boss of the Formula 1 team. “
