Despite winning two races with Mercedes this season, Lewis Hamilton has not had the best season.
The “boring” aspect of Formula 1 racing, according to Lewis Hamilton, is the experience of starting a race from pole position without facing any opposition.
After a season of inconsistent results, the well-known British driver is currently ranked sixth in the drivers’ championship. Despite a poor showing at the Dutch Grand Prix on Sunday, which was their worst race in a while after they had been improving before the summer break, his team, Mercedes, is in fourth place.
Hamilton won the Belgian Grand Prix and Silverstone last month, but he is still far behind the other drivers in the championship chase, which is led by Max Verstappen and Lando Norris. Hamilton is accustomed to leading races and has made it apparent that he prefers the thrill of the chase, even though he has struggled continuously since 2021 and has not secured a single pole this season.
Hamilton acknowledged that taking the lead outright can feel like a “test” session in an open discussion on the Performance People podcast, which is hosted by former Sky Sports presenter Georgie Ainslie. He also reaffirmed the excitement he gets from inciting fierce competition on the track, according to the Mirror.
“It’s so boring, honestly when you’re starting from first and leading the race all the way through, it’s really boring compared to fighting from the back and having a race,” Hamilton said, reflecting on the stark contrast between leading from the front and battling through the pack to secure a victory.
It’s not a race. You might be in the middle of an exam or session, fighting against the passing of time, but you have to force yourself to believe that there is a car ahead of you or something similar—you have to be chasing something. However, things change if there is a car or cars in front of you and the track allows you to pass, like Austin or Silverstone, for instance.”
“It’s the best thing, the most satisfying experience as a driver,” he continued, “different lines you’re trying to discover, utilising different tyres, wind, crosswinds, all these different things, and then you finally get someone in battle.”
Mercedes has recovered somewhat from last year’s setbacks, but they are still lagging behind Red Bull’s Max Verstappen, who is aiming for his fourth straight Championship win. Hamilton’s team had three wins since late June, but despite a mid-season surge, their progress was halted in the Netherlands last weekend.
After finishing seventh and eighth, respectively, after he and Hamilton made mistakes with their cars, George Russell wasn’t shy about criticizing them after the race. While Hamilton accepted his part in the disappointing outcome along with the problems with the vehicles, Russell insisted that the team “look into” the mishaps.
With Hamilton expected to leave Mercedes at the end of the current season to join Ferrari, replacing Carlos Sainz as Charles Leclerc’s partner, he will be looking to finish his career on a high note in the races left this year.
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