'I don't want to be that far ahead.' - Hamilton

Source :http://en.espnf1.com...ory/126573.html

Sounds like a very bitter Hamilton to me. 

Opinions?

Nope. He seems to value the 'fun' in driving (as in dicing with others and eventually ending up ahead) as much as he does winning.

I'm sure he'd be just fine having a car as quick as the Red Bull. This is just a little dig at Seb. Saying you haven't fought for the title. Naughty, but still makes me smile.

Edited by SanDiegoGo, 23 September 2013 - 18:07.

Seems like he's pretty much stating the facts (with respect to the RB car) as I imagine most of the racing world sees it, especially after Singapore.

Envious? Yes

Bitter? No

Telling it as it is? Probably

If words would get you wins and championships. Still remember in Malaysia how sad he was that he benefited from team orders and how unfair it all was.... while standing on the podium.

Also good thing we know from Lewis that he is always on the limit , always the hardest/best laps, quali, races of his life  etc.

Edited by Diablobb81, 23 September 2013 - 18:25.

You have to have a LOT of sour imagination to see any bitterness in that.

If words would get you wins and championships. Still remember in Malaysia how sad he was that he benefited from team orders and how unfair it all was.... while standing on the podium.

There was never any sign he was being insincere, though why you're bring up Malaysia TO at all is a mystery.  Are you mixing him up with Vettel?  And why, in any case?

Edited by undersquare, 23 September 2013 - 18:29.

Hamilton is very pure, or he likes to think he is. He relishes top level team mates, and "all he has ever wanted" is a car to fight. I can't help but think it's a little false, because the top drivers in the sport probably think they're "owed" a rocketship to get back level with Seb. 

Yeah, right! So if he get a car like that in the future he will go - "Nah man, I don't like it. The car is too fast, make it slower so I can fight the others." Fat chance!

No, he would take every possible win he could like anyone, but I'm sure It would get pretty boring in the race especially for a driver like him who seems to enjoy a good battle.

There was never any sign he was being insincere, though why you're bring up Malaysia TO at all is a mystery.  Are you mixing him up with Vettel?  And why, in any case?

Standing on the podium while lamenting the TO is enough. Maybe he should have fought with Nico. But like i said : words are easy. Actions are harder.

Standing on the podium while lamenting the TO is enough. Maybe he should have fought with Nico. But like i said : words are easy. Actions are harder.

Well your words are easy.

Why do you think Hamiton being quoted now, saying Vettel should not be booed, is an excuse for raking over an ill-natured twist on him and Nico obeying team orders back in March? 

It's just like video games. It's not fun to win when it's too easy.

Some drivers want to stomp the field mercilessly, end of. Hamilton savours the competition as well as the victories.

I don't think any driver would say no to a car in which they can lap 2s faster than the competition.  It doesn't happen very often though.

a bit sad comment, futile attempt at psychological warfare.

As much as I love Hamilton he is just lying here, he'd have no problem at all with being that far ahead winning races. None.

a bit sad comment, futile attempt at psychological warfare.

Yeah, that must be it.  Certainly got your brow all furrowed.

I don't think any driver would say no to a car in which they can lap 2s faster than the competition.  It doesn't happen very often though.

Well it depends on the alternatives, doesn't it?

I agree they'd choose it over being slower.  But how about 0.5s?  No booing.  I can easily believe Lewis, and other confident drivers, would prefer that.

As much as I love Hamilton he is just lying here, he'd have no problem at all with being that far ahead winning races. None.

Lewis would NOT like to be booed, that is the context.  That's the connection he's making.   Booing has one meaning in Italy, but elsewhere he'd much prefer to fight and be cheered.

I think he'd like to be dominant for just one season to prove a point, but I also believe he genuinely enjoys close racing enough to want to be back racing in the pack afterwards.

Well it depends on the alternatives, doesn't it?

 

I agree they'd choose it over being slower.  But how about 0.5s?  No booing.  I can easily believe Lewis, and other confident drivers, would prefer that.

I'm sure from the perspective of other drivers that when they look at Vettel lapping 2/3s faster on a dry track their hearts must sink.  It's another formula.  People can invent whatever reason reinforces their view of Hamilton as to what drives his opinion- bitterness, jealousy, realism, frustration...... probably a combination all of that.

I'm sure Lewis would like at least one season of that, if not just to secure a long overdue second title.

Though I remember Frank Williams talking about Alan Jones saying words to the effect of:

"He won one title and that was enough for him. He could have won multiple titles if he wanted but he wasn't motivated to after winning his first."

I quite like that. It hints that Jones was a bit of maverick. Certainly, I prefer it to Vettel's (seeing as he is the hot topic at the moment) trying to collect stats for the sake of it, as if F1 is a computer game. As Vettel is discovering for himself, in F1 stats are seldom enough to secure widespread respect and "legend" status.

Nope. He seems to value the 'fun' in driving (as in dicing with others and eventually ending up ahead) as much as he does winning.

Interestingly enough, it was just a handful of races ago when Mercedes had won 3 out of the last 4; and everybody was talking about "Oh, how dominant his car is".  Back then, when the perception was that the Mercedes was miles ahead the rest, I don't recall him valuing the "fun" in fighting with others on track that high... Back then, winning was the only thing on his mind. 

But since the situation changed quite dramatically in the last couple of races (and in Monza, his poor qualifying meant he never really had the chance to show the utter power of his car) now being in the team winning 3 out of the last 4 is "bad". 

I'm sure from the perspective of other drivers that when they look at Vettel lapping 2/3s faster on a dry track their hearts must sink.  It's another formula.  People can invent whatever reason reinforces their view of Hamilton as to what drives his opinion- bitterness, jealousy, realism, frustration...... probably a combination all of that.

Well some people invent his opinion.  It seems obvious enough to me that he disapproves of the booing, and in that context he himself would prefer a more modest car advantage, so that he wouldn't be booed.  Quite credible and innocuous.  And we know he does enjoy the combat, too.

After that yes people can invent stuff about it, and then get called on the invention.

And nobody is saying, so far, that really Sebi might not have preferred to have a smaller advantage, too.

So Hamilton says what every Seb fan doesn't want to hear, that from Seb's on board, in hammy's opinion, Seb's not even on the limit - which means the car is such a monster that even when you don't max it out you're still 2 seconds faster than anyone... I believe hammy but I suppose we'll hear the "what about Webbo" comments and questions about why if the car is such a beast doesn't Webbo produce the same results, (as if we don't also know reason for that).

If he would drive in the RB right now, he would go to Ferrari just to have a worse car? Don't tell me that Hamy!

But i think what he wants to say with that is, that he loves racing and not winning.

He's just trolling Seb.

So Hamilton says what every Seb fan doesn't want to hear, that from Seb's on board, in hammy's opinion, Seb's not even on the limit - which means the car is such a monster that even when you don't max it out you're still 2 seconds faster than anyone... I believe hammy but I suppose we'll hear the "what about Webbo" comments and questions about why if the car is such a beast doesn't Webbo produce the same results, (as if we don't also know reason for that).

Exactly.

It was obvious to see - and they even said it on commentary. Whilst everyone else was hanging it out - Seb was just caining it between the white lines. I think the closest he got to a wall in anger was when he was doing his swerves as he crossed the finish line. 

But hey. You've got to deliver.

A bit of a backhanded compliment really. But I actually believe what he says. He wants to win bu do it in a hard fought way. Same as the rest probably. including vet

Well some people invent his opinion.  It seems obvious enough to me that he disapproves of the booing, and in that context he himself would prefer a more modest car advantage, so that he wouldn't be booed.  Quite credible and innocuous.  And we know he does enjoy the combat, too.

 

After that yes people can invent stuff about it, and then get called on the invention.

 

And nobody is saying, so far, that really Sebi might not have preferred to have a smaller advantage, too.

This, basically. Seems to me what he's saying is if he had a choice he would like a car that's a little bit better than the rest. If he had a choice between one that is much faster and one that isn't fast enough he's obviously gonna take the much faster one.

Edited by bub, 23 September 2013 - 20:41.

Source :http://en.espnf1.com...ory/126573.html

 

Sounds like a very bitter Hamilton to me. 

 

Opinions?

Sound like a true fighter form me. A victory is more srtisfying if you worked/ fighted hard for it, than if it was a walk in the park.

This is true spirit

Interestingly enough, it was just a handful of races ago when Mercedes had won 3 out of the last 4; and everybody was talking about "Oh, how dominant his car is".  Back then, when the perception was that the Mercedes was miles ahead the rest, I don't recall him valuing the "fun" in fighting with others on track that high... Back then, winning was the only thing on his mind. 

But since the situation changed quite dramatically in the last couple of races (and in Monza, his poor qualifying meant he never really had the chance to show the utter power of his car) now being in the team winning 3 out of the last 4 is "bad". 

Mercedes never was dominant. BTW read Hamiltons quotes after the races, he often says he enjoyed the race even if the result was not what he hoped for. e.g. Monza

Hamilton has a bit of a habit to talk up the cars of opposition (well, most drivers have this habit) - the 2-second gap was circumstantial and not representative for this season. Rosberg tried to preserve tyres whereas Vettel did fast laps to perform another stop. Hamilton was stuck in traffic most of the time, but also went 1:50 with mediums at the end when he briefly had free air. Alonso was 1.5 seconds slower at the end, but he was on much older medium tyres. All I'm saying is that we cannot cherry pick those 2 seconds/lap as representative pace - let alone applying them to the whole season. There have been races in which whoever got the tyres working had a pretty significant gap as well - albeit rarely for the entire race. 

I also remember his "4 apex" quote from last year at a weekend when McLaren themselves were faster than RB in qualy. I'm far less knowledgeable than him in terms of F1, but Vettels qualy laps look very aggressive using all of the curbs. It's not always the same in the race, but cars are generally further away from there limits due to tyres. In addition, the commentators mentioned that the GP2 winner also took similar lines to Vettel (very clean compared to his lines on other tracks) - maybe that just works in Singapore for whatever reason.

As for having more opposition: I think Vettel enjoys wins as in Germany this year more as well, but he won't artificially slow down for more entertainment if that reduces his chances for a win (which would have been reduced, had he ended up behind another car after the last pit stop).

Edited by apoka, 23 September 2013 - 21:00.

Sound like a true fighter form me. A victory is more srtisfying if you worked/ fighted hard for it, than if it was a walk in the park.

This is true spirit

Please, don't make me laugh.

I don't think any driver would say no to a car in which they can lap 2s faster than the competition.  It doesn't happen very often though.

Hamilton thought McLaren would have a very good car this year, and left them to change to a supposed much worse car.

McLaren was one of the best cars last season, and Mercedes was pretty bad. Nobody knew McLaren was stupid enough to give up the fastest car at the nd of the year for a inferior car. Remember how many people tipped Button for WDC 2013, and how many experts called Lewis decission stupid to leave a grreat car for a worse.

I think Lewis generally enjoys wheel to wheel battles and really scrapping for a win, similar to the battle he has in USA 2012. I do not think it is bitter as such, just a bit of a adrenaline junkie, I am sure he would rather lead by a country mile than labor home in 12th like he did in Spain.

This is pretty simple actually: E-ve-ry driver on the grid will value wins/ a championship more if they pull it off in a car that is not supposed to give them that. However, not a single driver would ever complain about having a lightning fast car, since that itself is also a pleasure to drive, like Vettel always says. Plus, in normal circumstances you still have to fight your teammate.

You have to have a LOT of sour imagination to see any bitterness in that.

I have nothing to be sour about. It's simply an opinion I have that he's a bit bitter about not being in Vettel's position. I can pretty much dig up numerous articles, where Hamilton has categorically stated that he wants to achieve the most than any driver in history. I can also point out numerous races, where Hamilton has absolutely trounced the field and dominated a grand prix and not felt bored or felt that he didn't have to fight for it. 

I understand you're a Hamilton fan. I admire the guy's guts too. But, this isn't rocket science. You give any damn racing driver a car that's the fastest by aeons and they'll snatch your hand off for it.

Also, he clearly mentions that Vettel is having it 'easy' and not having to 'push.' I don't think anyone really knows how hard he's working. It's only Vettel who knows. I'm not going to bring up Mark, simply because he's not in Sebastian's league anymore.

Edited by Schuttelberg, 23 September 2013 - 21:07.

This, basically. Seems to me what he's saying is if he had a choice he would like a car that's a little bit better than the rest. If he had a choice between one that is much faster and one that isn't fast enough he's obviously gonna take the much faster one.

Hamilton already had the choice . He did it 2012 and left the fastest car on the grid for a much worse. IT was supposed Mclaren would have a superior car 2013 and Mercedes a inferior one, but what has he done? When Hamilton made the decission to leave McL he had a great car wich was a bit faster than the rest ( If not for the teams ineptness who threw away this advantage by being subpar at everything else 2012)

BTW, why doesn't Hamilton get any/much booing for this comment? He's basically saying all the teams, except Red Bull, have performed **** this season. Imagine the sh*tload if Vettel had said after Singapore "Yeah, actually is was too easy and not really fun. The cars of all the other teams are so slow, the racing is really not fun anymore for us".

Edited by F.M., 23 September 2013 - 21:06.

BTW, why doesn't Hamilton get any/much booing for this comment? He's basically saying all the teams, except Red Bull, have performed **** this season. Imagine the sh*tload if Vettel had said after Singapore "Yeah, actually is was too easy and not really fun. The cars of all the other teams are so slow, the racing is really not fun anymore for us".

Stupid post, nowhere is hamilton sayin somthing like this!

I have nothing to be sour about. It's simply an opinion I have that he's a bit bitter about not being in Vettel's position. I can pretty much dig up numerous articles, where Hamilton has categorically stated that he wants to achieve the most than any driver in history. I can also point out numerous races, where Hamilton has absolutely trounced the field and dominated a grand prix and not felt bored or felt that he didn't have to fight for it. 

 

I understand you're a Hamilton fan. I admire the guy's guts too. But, this isn't rocket science. You give any damn racing driver a car that's the fastest by aeons and they'll snatch your hand off for it.

 

Also, he clearly mentions that Vettel is having it 'easy' and not having to 'push.' I don't think anyone really knows how hard he's working. It's only Vettel who knows. I'm not going to bring up Mark, simply because he's not in Sebastian's league anymore.

Vettel had it very easy the last few races, don't fool yourself

I think that Vettel would like to have a bigger challenge also if every single race would end up being like the Singapore. But what can he do when the car fits him like a glove? We wouldn't like if he'd slow down in purpose either?

When the drivers have been young guys dreaming about racing they've most likely imagined close victories and nerve-cracking battles.  So I think that Hamilton is saying what he's thinking.

Vettel is going to have close championships, and he has had 2 VERY close ones already. He will get tougher years and he knows it. So I'm sure he's making most of it when it's possible.

I understand what he means. I like starting from the back of the grid on racing games so I get a chance to pass the AI cars. Starting from pole and driving away is sooo boring.

Hamilton already had the choice . He did it 2012 and left the fastest car on the grid for a much worse. IT was supposed Mclaren would have a superior car 2013 and Mercedes a inferior one, but what has he done? When Hamilton made the decission to leave McL he had a great car wich was a bit faster than the rest ( If not for the teams ineptness who threw away this advantage by being subpar at everything else 2012)

I seem to remember him talking to Red Bull before Mercedes. He would have chosen them over Mercedes I think.

Lewis doesn't want to be a drinks company lorry driver.

I have nothing to be sour about. It's simply an opinion I have that he's a bit bitter about not being in Vettel's position. I can pretty much dig up numerous articles, where Hamilton has categorically stated that he wants to achieve the most than any driver in history. I can also point out numerous races, where Hamilton has absolutely trounced the field and dominated a grand prix and not felt bored or felt that he didn't have to fight for it. 

 

I understand you're a Hamilton fan. I admire the guy's guts too. But, this isn't rocket science. You give any damn racing driver a car that's the fastest by aeons and they'll snatch your hand off for it.

 

Also, he clearly mentions that Vettel is having it 'easy' and not having to 'push.' I don't think anyone really knows how hard he's working. It's only Vettel who knows. I'm not going to bring up Mark, simply because he's not in Sebastian's league anymore.

I know you have nothing to be sour about.  So what's your excuse? 

The article is from the BBC which is headlined 

Lewis Hamilton: Sebastian Vettel does not deserve to be booed

others headlined it:

That is the context.  Lewis thinks the booing is happening largely because of Sebi's ongoing car advantage.  It's pretty obvious that he (and even Sebi who knows) would rather NOT be booed but win with a dazzling herioc struggle.  That's what's not rocket science.

Edited by undersquare, 23 September 2013 - 21:29.

I don't see what is wrong with what Lewis said. He wants to win, but he enjoys the battles too...Lewis has always been a fighter, all through his racing career. The guy is just being honest.

Vettel had it very easy the last few races, don't fool yourself

He's got a really good car and he's maximising everything. I'll just compare him to the other three world champions and title contenders for the past three races in comparison to their team mates, so you really understand how difficult it is to put it all together.

BELGIUM - Spa Francorchamps.

Qualifying - Race

Vettel P2 - P1 

Webber P3 - P5

Alonso P9 - P2

Massa P10 - P7

Hamilton P1 - P3

Rosberg P4 - P4

Raikkonen P8 - RET

Grosjean P7 - P8

ITALY - Monza

Qualifying/Race

Vettel P1 - P1

Webber P2 - P3

Alonso P5 - P2 (allowed to pass Massa)

Massa P4 - P4

Hamilton P12 - P9

Rosberg P6 - P6

Raikkonen P11 - P11

Grosjean P13 - P8

SINGAPORE 

Vettel P1 - P1

Webber P4 - P15 (Ret)

Alonso P7 - P2

Massa P6 - P6

Hamilton P5 - P5

Rosberg P2 - P4

Raikkonen P13 - P3

Grosjean P3 - (Ret)

From the above, the last three races : 

1) Vettel has out-qualified and out raced Webber on all occasions. (6-0)

2) Alonso has been out-qualified twice and out raced Massa on all occasions. (4-2)

3) Hamilton has been out-qualified twice and been out raced twice by Rosberg. (2-4)

4) Raikkonen has been out-qualified twice and been out raced twice by Grosjean.*

*Raikkonen did suffer with reliability/sickness/incidents, so his stats are blurred.

Regardless, Vettel may have had the best car, but like the rest of the season, he's not left any stone unturned. He simply just maximises everything and never lets up.