After twelve years and countless successes, Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes are now rivals in Formula 1. The Silver Arrows are aware of what a tough opponent the Brit will be in the Ferrari. Looking back, people at Mercedes rave highly about Hamilton.
In an interview with the New York Times, Mercedes chief engineer Andrew Shovlins highlighted Lewis Hamilton’s role in the German-British factory team’s successes.
“There is no other driver like him, so you could definitely say he is unique in this respect,” Shovlin praised the record world champion’s work ethic.
“It’s a lot of fun to work with him,” the Brit continued. Hamilton is always “committed to success”. What makes the 40-year-old special is Hamilton’s “phobia of losing,” which guides his work.
“That’s great because when you have a driver who brings that to the team, everyone pushes endlessly and wants to improve endlessly. That brings a lot of energy to the team,” said Shovlin.
Hamilton is “the only driver that comes to mind that I have worked with where this has been demonstrated to this degree,” said the Silver Arrows’ chief engineer. Although all “good drivers” hate losing, “that’s absolutely standard,” says Shovlin.
The fear that this triggers in Hamilton sets the seven-time champion apart from the rest.
Formula 1: Hamilton wants to set the ultimate monument for himself
Until he moved to Ferrari, Hamilton always drove with at least Mercedes power in the rear.
He started his Formula 1 career at McLaren-Mercedes in 2007 and won his first title with the traditional team from Woking just a year later.
In 2013 he switched to the Mercedes factory team. As a Silver Arrows driver, Hamilton won six more world titles, most recently triumphing in the drivers’ championship in 2020.
With Ferrari, Hamilton wants to set the ultimate monument for himself – to become the sole record champion in the red racer ahead of Michael Schumacher.
Source: www.sport.de
