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Jenson Button speaks to Sky Sports News after former teammate Lewis Hamilton clinched the seventh Formula 1 title with the 94th win in Turkey; Button thinks Hamilton is the ‘complete package’ and will want to break Michael Schumacher’s record
By Matt Morlidge
Last Updated: 11/16/20 10:22 am
1:34
Jenson Button hopes his former teammate Lewis Hamilton will win the F1 championship again next season after equaling Michael Schumacher’s record of seven drivers’ world titles.
Jenson Button has hailed Lewis Hamilton’s “outstanding” seventh world championship and believes it is the “complete” package of Formula 1, which will now be motivated to move away from Michael Schumacher’s records.
The Sky Sports F1 expert and 2009 F1 champion was Hamilton’s teammate for three years with McLaren before moving to Mercedes, where he has embarked on an incredible streak of successes, now statistically the most successful driver in the history of F1 after equaling Schumacher as a driver. a seven-time title winner, and already holds the records for the most race, pole and podium victories.
Hamilton clinched the 2020 crown in style, winning from sixth on the grid in a Mercedes car that was unusually slow for much of the Turkish GP in steamy, wet and slippery conditions. That, according to Button, shows how much Hamilton has grown as he paid tribute to his British partner.
“Lewis, to me, was always known for his absolute speed,” Button said. Sky Sports News. “This race was a bit different, there were less overtaking and it was more strategic.
7:52 Lewis Hamilton reflects on his season, the lockout and his campaign for social justice after claiming his seventh F1 title
“I think that’s what made him even more impressive with Lewis – he understood what was needed with those tires in those drying conditions. In terms of strategy, Lewis has grown a lot in that area and that made him the complete package that it is”.
“Seven times champion, that’s extraordinary.”
Button, who surpassed Hamilton’s points count during their three years together (2010-12) at McLaren and retired from F1 in 2017, added: “His direct pace, his natural ability, has always been extreme.
“I could never be with him and with his absolute rhythm. But in race conditions I could because I don’t think his strategy was there then.”
“The drivers always say we don’t look at the numbers, we don’t compare, but you will always compare yourself to Michael Schumacher when you have the same world titles.”
Jenson Button on former teammate Lewis Hamilton
“He has learned a lot over the years and that is what makes him a great driver. He is always willing to learn and improve. Winning so many world championships on the rebound is very impressive.”
Button backs Hamilton for more F1 titles
With Hamilton now living up to Schumacher’s total of seven championships, but has yet to sign a new contract with Mercedes, which expires next month, there has inevitably been a lot of debate about what will happen next.
After the race in Turkey, Hamilton, who had previously stated that contract negotiations would commence after the 2020 title was sealed, but that there was “no guarantee” that he would stay in F1, said that he was “just getting started” in sports and wanted to continue to deliver on the track and use his platform for larger issues off the track.
0:55 Jenson Button says it’s great to see Lewis Hamilton and others use his platform to help promote diversity within F1.
And Button believes Hamilton will want to break and expand F1 records.
“Winning is the best motivation,” he said. “Drivers who have a long career in F1, if they are winning they will continue to compete because that is what you love. When you are not winning it becomes much more difficult and that is when your career comes and ends normally, but I don’t see that that happen soon for Lewis.
“He wants to win more world championships than anyone before and I’m sure he would love it.
“The drivers always say we don’t look at the numbers, we don’t compare, but you will always compare yourself to Michael Schumacher when you have the same world titles.
“Those two are extraordinary individuals, very different in their personalities and the way they compete, but equally talented. Lewis is in the right place to beat Michael’s record and I really think he will do it next year. Then the regulations. They will change in 2022 and that’s when it gets really exciting, to see where it takes him and Mercedes in the future. “
1:11 Sky F1’s Martin Brundle praised Lewis Hamilton for finding a grip on his tires that others couldn’t, as the Briton equaled Michael Schumacher’s record of seven world titles.
With little rule change for 2021, Hamilton, if he sticks, and Mercedes will be big favorites for next season before a possible pecking order update the following year.
“I really hope that in 2022 other teams can challenge Mercedes because it is a better sport, and also Lewis would enjoy more of a challenge from players like Max Verstappen, Charles Leclerc, Daniel Ricciardo,” Button said.
“That’s really what the sport wants to see: him fighting up front for those wins.”
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