Lewis Hamilton has only worked with his new Mercedes teammate for a week, but the triple F1 World Champion claims already found himself a “new best teammate ever” in the Finn and is impressed with his sense of humour.
Speaking to the official F1 website, Hamilton said, “What I so far like about working with Valtteri is that it is all to do with the track – what we do on the circuit – and not outside. There are no games – there is complete transparency. I like that.”
“I feel we already have a better working relationship than I ever had with any team mate I had before. He wants to do the best thing that he can in his first year with the team – and with me being here for quite a while now, I want to deliver and make sure that I give as much information so that he will learn.”
“And we do our talking on the track!” added Hamilton who before the Barcelona test revelaed that he was not keen on sharing data with his teammates.
Hamilton also revealed that Bottas “makes his own entertainment” and “is very witty and comes out with some very funny things – which you would not really expect from a Finn!”
Bookies have Hamilton as the preseason favourite, but he seemed unaware of the fact, “Is that so? I didn’t know that. That’s nice to hear. Well, I am fitter, I am working harder than ever before and I am super focused and driven after last year – when I also worked hard through the year but didn’t get the result I wanted.”
“So I want change and that is what the team and I are working so hard to achieve. I am not really sure, but I don’t think that any team has ever won championships across rules changes – and that is the big goal for us.”
“We want to stay up front – but it will be a very interesting season for us, and for the fans,” added Hamilton who will be competing in his tenth season in Formula 1 when he lines up on the grid in Melbourne on 26 March.
Hamilton has had an interesting and varied history with F1 teammates starting during his rookie season with Fernando Alonso at McLaren, in 2007. A year packed with stress and animosity between the two, particularly towards the end of the year when that pair were title contenders.
In 2008 and 2009 Hamilton was paired up with his first Finnish teammate Heikki Kovalainen, after Alonso departed McLaren. There was no tension between the pair, perhaps because the Finn was simply not in the same class. Hamilton went on to win the his first title during their first year together in the team.
In 1010 Kovalainen was replaced by Jenson Button, the reigning F1 World Champion at the time, joining Hamilton at McLaren where they remained teammates for a ‘peaceful’ three years.
In 2013 Hamilton departed McLaren to join Mercedes, replacing F1 legend Michael Schumacher, and teaming up with his childhood mate Nico Rosberg.
During the course of the next four years the friendship disintegrated as the pair tussled for the title in a climate of constant tension and conflict within the team. The pair crashing into one another on more than one occasion as they battled for the title from within the same team.
Hamilton won the title on two occasions – 2014 and 20165 – with Rosberg claiming the 2016 title and retiring five days after the accomplishment and thus freeing up the seat with Mercedes which Bottas now fills.
Read the full story at GRAND PRIX 247
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