Lewis Hamilton wants to emulate the tennis players he admires – Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic – by delivering consistent results in his attempt to win the Formula One world championship after his intense battle with Sebastian Vettel to win the Spanish Grand Prix. The British driver, who now trails Vettel by six points, also insisted that despite the pair nearly clashing during the race that their relationship remained one that was respectful but with a hard, competitive edge.
Hamilton won at the Circuit de Catalunya during a tense and engrossing meeting, that hinged on his Mercedes team’s strategy, out-thinking Ferrari with their tyre options and pit stop calls. But the three-times world champion had to work hard to ensure he took the flag. Vettel took the lead from the start and Hamilton was forced to catch and pass him after the final round of stops. The pair went wheel to wheel at turn one with the Ferrari driver squeezing Hamilton wide and just off the track, which the latter referred to as dangerous on team radio at the time. He made the pass stick several laps later on the start-finish straight with softer rubber and the advantage of DRS.
“What I loved about the race with Sebastian is I love tennis and I love watching Federer and Djokovic in the final and what I really admire is consistency,” he said. “I admire their concentration and how they are so awesome and stay at the limit. I felt I had that battle on Sunday.”
Hamilton believes it is an approach he needs to take to the season as a whole. With the next round at Monaco in two weeks, a meeting he has won twice before and holds dear, he was focusing on the long game rather than individual race wins.
“For me it is about consistency,” he said. “You can get ahead for one race and be behind in the next. It is about trying to perform as I have this weekend at every single race we have left. That is what I am thinking about. It doesn’t matter if I am leading the championship after the next race what matters is if I am leading the championship after the last race.
“Of course I want to win Monaco, of course that means I would be leading the championship, but the importance of that is not the points it’s the actual win.”
His comments reflect how seriously he takes the fight with Vettel and that he expects it to be maintained throughout the season. Both teams brought upgrades but on track there was almost nothing to choose between them, as was the case at the opening four races of the season.
He acknowledged how close the pair were, saying he had been breathless during the race because of “the intensity of the fight”. “I was on the edge,” he added. “I was very much on the edge, I was pushing, I couldn’t push any more, every lap.”
He later described his comments as the pair met at turn one as “in the heat of the moment” and reiterated that their fight would remain fair as the season progresses. “We just had a very close battle,” he said. “If it had gone in a different direction, it would have been different. If he had hit me in turn one and won the race I’m not going to be happy. It was aggressive but I was still able to remain in the fight and avoid it, ultimately I was able to avoid a collision.
“But I love a tough fight and I love a challenge. He was respectful and still that respect stayed the same at the end. On Sunday he was angry, he said he was angry, he drove a fantastic race but I can understand how he feels. We are never going to be happy finishing second. If he finished second and was happy, I would be concerned.”
