[ad_1]
“The crazy thing about this is, I would have thought I’d get used to things. But today I was getting ready to put my helmet on in the garage – nervous, uncertain. All these different things you go through and it’s still scary!”
By James Galloway
Last Updated: 10/25/20 5:54 pm
Lewis Hamilton said he was “very honored” to become the most successful F1 driver of all time, explaining that despite his record success, race days were still “terrifying”.
The Englishman is now alone at the top of the sport’s all-time winners table after his 92nd in a dominant performance at the Portuguese GP, recovering brilliantly from losing ground in the opening laps to win by nearly half a minute.
In an engaging and insightful post-career interview with Sky Sports F1 – which can be seen in its entirety in the video above – Hamilton said he was grateful for the historic success.
“I feel fantastic. Very honored,” said Hamilton, who had tied Michael Schumacher’s mark of 91 victories in the previous race in Germany.
“It’s very difficult to explain the feeling. I feel young, I feel energetic. And of course I am very grateful. I am constantly thinking about the guys I am working with.”
Hamilton was 22 years old and in the seventh race of his rookie season in F1 when he first won the 2007 Canadian GP with McLaren.
His historic 92nd success comes in his fourteenth season at the age of 35 and places him a short distance from a seventh championship equivalent to Schumacher. With a 77-point lead over Valtteri Bottas, Hamilton could clinch that historic title already at the Turkish GP on November 15.
1:37 Take a look at Lewis Hamilton’s journey to a record 92 victory in the Formula 1 race.
But while the relentless nature of Hamilton and Mercedes’ success means that there is something unavoidable about the identity of the F1 race winner in recent seasons, the Englishman says he still experiences many doubts and uncertainties before each race start with so many. variables in play. at each Grand Prix.
“Every race, and every race won in particular, has had certain characteristics, a different journey, each time,” explained Hamilton, who made his 262nd F1 start on Sunday.
“The crazy thing about this is that I would have thought I would get used to things. But today I was getting ready, putting my helmet on in the garage: nerves, uncertainty. Have I remembered my strategy? Have I remembered my switch settings?
“All these different things you go through and it’s still scary!
“You wake up on a Sunday and every Sunday you feel different. It’s difficult to register, am I okay today? There are days when I’m getting in the car on the grid and I say ‘I don’t feel good’ this is not going to go well ‘, then I drive in the best possible way.
2:35 Sky F1’s Anthony Davidson was on the SkyPad to discuss Lewis Hamilton’s 92nd career victory at the Portuguese Grand Prix.
“Then I have days where I feel really good and it’s not that great. So you never know what to expect, but all I try to do is prepare as best I can.”
Praising the team’s role in their preparations and routine, Hamilton said: “Although I have had all the success, I study more than I have studied. I practice many things, so you are establishing certain things done as consistent as they are.
“I also work with amazing people. They are really phenomenal. Look at how reliable I have been. [one DNF in the last 79 races and none in the last 45] – That’s not a coincidence. That’s done because guys don’t really take no for an answer and people don’t fall behind in success and continue to develop together. “
[ad_2]
